NOTE: RADIO CONTROL AIRPLANES ARE ON THE BOTTOM HALF OF THE PAGE.
The Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne is the first non-government sponsored manned aircraft ever to reach space. This was accomplished in two flights. The first on September 29, 2004 and again on October 4, 2004.
The idea behind the rocket powered aircraft was to prove that private enterprise could develop a vehicle capable of taking people into space at a fraction of the cost of government programs. The reward was the Ansari X Prize of US$10,000,000.
Flying the aircraft required a compromise of coordinating its controls to obtain maximum velocity with tempering overall maximum performance parameters to enable a smooth and stable flight path. A lack of primary control response resulted in over controlled inputs in the thin sub-orbital atmosphere during prior test flights causing the rapid spinning of the aircraft. This was avoided during record setting attempts.
SpaceShipOne was carried to a launch altitude of just over 47,000 feet under the belly of its launch vehicle named the White Knight. When launched, a rocket motor took the space vehicle to an altitude of over 367,000 feet.
The rocket flights lasted last than half an hour each from the time of engine ignition to their landings.
SpaceShipOne has been retired and is currently on display at the Smithsonian.
In the first picture above is the Estes rc Space Ship One RTF rocket being launched from its mother ship. It was converted to radio control. The scale model rc airplane is 13" long, 2" in diameter, and can be launched from the ground up to about 400 feet in height.
The first two pictures below are of the rc Space Ship One scratch built by Rocket Team Vatsass. It is 80" long with a 72" wingspan and has a 15" diameter. The scale model rc airplane uses an L class motor for power. Its weighs about 49 lbs.
The bottom picture is of the rc SpaceShipOne rc airplane built by John Baligrodzki. It is a foamy glider that uses some balsa in its construction. Wingspan is 26" and length is 25".
Please email us if you can suggest any other rc SpaceShipOne rockets or airplanes for this page.
SpaceShipOne
