Virgin Space flight: a step closer

With the first Virgin space flight due in just two years, a British pilot is set to fulfil a childhood dream by becoming the first person to pilot one of Virgin's Galactic aircraft.


David Mackay, 53, will be the chief pilot for Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic when it begins the first sub-orbital space flights by 2013. More than 400 passengers have already paid £125,000 for the experience of a weightless flight 100km above the earth's surface!


Mr Mackay is currently in the U.S training for the flight in one of Virgin's test aircraft named the 'WhiteKnightTwo' and is one of four pilots who are currently placing the aircraft through it's paces.


When Mr Mackay gets round to flying passengers commercially, he will pilot the Mothership to 50,000 feet before blasting of into space on the spaceship by means of a rocket motor, accelerating at 2,500mph before leaving the Earth's atmosphere. Once the ship has reached it's cruising height of 360,000ft above the Earth, passengers will able to unbuckle themselves and experience the weightlessness of outer-space!


In the meantime, we will have to make do with our Boeings and Airbusses, but hopefully someday will all be able to afford this amazing opportunity!