spacetoday.net: Scaled announces X Prize flight plans

Posted: Tue, Jul 27, 2004, 7:07 PM ET (2307 GMT)
SpaceShipOne landing on June 21 2004 (J. Foust)

SpaceShipOne, the suborbital RLV developed by Scaled Composites, will make the first of its two qualifying Ansari X Prize flights on September 29, prize organizers said Tuesday. The $10-million prize requires two flights to 100 kilometers in a two-week period; if a flight takes place on September 29 the second would have to take place by October 13. SpaceShipOne flew to just over 100 km on a flight June 21, but encountered some problems during the flight; at a press conference Scaled's Burt Rutan said those problems were understood and no modifications to the vehicle would be required. At the same press conference another X Prize competitor, The da Vinci Project, announced it would unveil its vehicle, Wild Fire, next week in Toronto. The effort plans to carry out flights later this year, but has yet to announce specific dates. SpaceShipOne has been funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who has spent at least $20 million on the project. By contrast, da Vinci has raised less than $350,000 in cash to date, relying on volunteers and donations. Da Vinci needs to raise an additional $350,000 to pay for its X Prize flights.