Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity spacecraft is one step closer to welcoming commercial passengers after a successful sixth test glide on Friday.
The plane, known as SpaceShipTwo, was trialling for rocket-powered flights by holding 1,000lbs (454kg) of water to simulate the weight of fuel.
It was taken up 40,000 feet (12km) into the skies by a carrier aircraft, named VMS Eve, and released. On the way to land, the pilots tested various manoeuvres and equipment, including a high-g pull-up manoeuvre and bank-to-bank rolls.
Earlier today VSS Unity took to the skies for her 6th glide test flight! Read more about this test flight here: https://t.co/rXkyktr5cD pic.twitter.com/CYwe0h8SF6
— Virgin Galactic (@virgingalactic) August 4, 2017
Previous tests ejected the water on board, but this time the pilots landed the craft landed successfully with a full load of water in the Mojave Desert in North America.
Chief pilot David Mackay said of the flight: “We are really pleased with what we saw today.
“We collected hundreds of gigabytes of data for us to review, and from the pilots’ point of view, it felt really wonderful.”