The world’s biggest airplane made its first flight on Saturday morning, April 13, 2019. It is built by spacecraft construction company called Stratolaunch.
The aircraft has 6 feet, it has a double fuselage of 72 meters long. It took off from Mojave Air and Space Port, 70 miles north of Los Angeles. The plane flew for the first time about two and a half hours, reaching a maximum speed of 304 kilometers per hour and an altitude of 5,182 meters.
The aircraft has 28 wheels, with its own weight of 226.7 tons and a flight autonomy of 3704 kilometers. Its wings have a length of 117 meters, being larger than the length of a football field. However, this plane will not be able to land at many airports in the world because it requires at least 3.6 km of the track, and the standard tracks only measure 2.6 km.
“It was an emotional moment for me, personally, to see this majestic flying bird,” said Jean Floyd, CEO of Stratolaunch. “Today’s flight continues our mission to provide a flexible alternative to ground-based launch systems,” Floyd added.
The world’s largest airplane takes flight! @Stratolaunch @NASASpaceflight #stratolaunch pic.twitter.com/jmLs3mpztn
— Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer) April 13, 2019
The launch could be initiated only now, because more incremental tests have been carried out in recent years, including the initial launch and engine tests in 2017, as well as other different speed tests.
This plane was built to carry missiles at the boundary between terrestrial atmosphere and space, from where they will be launched to put satellites in orbit. According to the company, by 2022, three space vehicles would be launched in space. Satellites placed in orbit with Stratolaunch will provide Internet services around the globe, supporting satellite communications.
