Posted 07.29.2009 at 4:14 pm
7 Comments
We previously showed you construction of Virgin Galactic’s WhiteKnight Two, the mothership that will help launch SpaceShipTwo into sub-orbit. However, Flight Global was able to sneak in some exclusive photos and video from inside the cockpit.
WhiteKnightTwo flew for the public on Tuesday at Wisconsin's massive Oshkosh AirVenture show, complete with head honcho Sir Richard Branson strapped into the jump seat. Without knowing it's a custom-fabbed Rutan space tourism mothership, it may look like any other new airliner's all-glass cockpit. But if you're thinking of dropping millions on one of Virgin Galactic's first seats, it's good to know everything about what will carry you into the heavens.
WhiteKnight Two Cockpit: copyright Flightglobal/Reed Business Information
WhiteKnight Two Right Seat: copyright Flightglobal/Reed Business Information
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Technology, Dan Smith, cockpit, cockpit controls, low earth orbit, new technology, space tourism, spaceshiptwo, Virgin Galactic, whiteknighttwo Want to read more articles on the military, aviation, and space? Subscribe to Popular Science today, for less than $1 per issue!
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In my opinion, the Virgin Galactic's plane because of its planning might face technical problems. The plane with its two plane like bodies along its main body create a lot of drag force, and a plane with this kind of planning is heavier naturally.
Aircraft electrical systems technician
dordor77@netvision.net.il
what about the father ship?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEUWrj7SyPk
Cockpit pics.
I'm drooling!
"Welcome! to the Federation Starship SS Buttcrack!!!"
A suggestion to the Editor/s of Popsci, if you're going to bother posting images with text, but post the images so small that the text can't be read, at least post a link to the original image where it can be viewed full size.
Lots of websites put up great images, including yours, that are thumbnail-sized wastes of space... why bother?
In my opinion keep it up, can't wait to see on board when they fly this thing and show Nasa what's up.
Didn't you see the link to Flight Global? they had it in the body twice.
www.flightglobal.com/blogs/hyperbola/2009/07/exclusive-pictures-wk2-cockpit.html
I was referring to the images here:
popsci.com/military-aviation-space/gallery/2008-01/virgin-galactic-unveils-new-designs
I wanted to read the text starting at frame 19 in the series of images they link to. I can't read it, can you?