Stratolaunch, The World's Largest Aircraft, Took Off For The First Time

Indira Datta - Apr 17, 2019

Stratolaunch, the world's largest aircraft project, took off for the first time from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California last Saturday.

Stratolaunch, the world's largest aircraft, took off for the first time in California last Saturday. This is the enthusiastic project of Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft. Unfortunately, he died at the age of 65 in October last year before he could witness the aircraft's first flight.

Stratolaunch Successful First Trip Paul Allen — Paul Allen's Stratolaunch has completed its first flight as the world's largest all-composite aircraft

According to Stratolaunch, the historic milestone started off at California-based Mojave Air and Space Port. The giant aircraft flew for two and a half hours above the desert at a maximum speed of 304 kilometers per hour and an altitude of 5,200 meters.

Here is a short video about the take-off process of the aircraft:

Stratolaunch is currently the largest aircraft in the world and its main task is to carry other vehicles which can be launched into space.

Stratolaunch's wings are so long that it can touch from one end of the football stadium to the other. Imagine this giant plane taking off, flying high into the air and launching a rocket ferrying a satellite into the universe. The reinforced center wing dimensions are up to 117 meters, allowing it to accommodate multiple launchers weighing up to 226,796 kilograms.

The pilots controlling the aircraft had a lot of work to do and went through a training process including taking off and landing simulations and flight control operations to be able to take the Stratolaunch to the sky for the very first time. After the journey, it returned to the ground safely.