The world's largest airplane, built by the late Paul Allen's company Stratolaunch, makes its first test flight in the Mojave Desert. Photo: ReutersThe world's largest aircraft took off over the Mojave Desert in California on Saturday, the first flight for the carbon-composite plane built by Stratolaunch Systems Corp, started by late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, as the company enters the lucrative private space market. "What a fantastic first flight," Stratolaunch Chief Executive Officer Jean Floyd said in a statement posted to the company's website. "Today’s flight furthers our mission to provide a flexible alternative to ground launched systems, Floyd said. "We are incredibly proud of the Stratolaunch team, today’s flight crew, our partners at Northrup Grumman’s Scaled Composites and the Mojave Air and Space Port."

Source: Otago Daily Times April 14, 2019 00:22 UTC