SpaceShipOne flight 14P
{{Short description|Third powered flight of SpaceShipOne (2004)}}
{{Infobox aircraft flight
| operator = Scaled Composites
| maximum_altitude = {{cvt|211400|ft}}
| aircraft = SpaceShipOne
| aircraft_type = Rocket-powered aircraft
| crew = 1
| takeoff_date = May 13, 2004
| takeoff_site = Mojave Airport
| landing_date = May 13, 2004
| landing_site = Mojave Airport
}}
Flight 14P of SpaceShipOne was its third powered flight, which occurred on May 13, 2004. The pilot was Mike Melvill.
Details
SpaceShipOne was released from White Knight at an altitude of {{Convert|46000|ft|km|1|abbr=on}} and a speed of 120 knots (62 m/s). After ten seconds the rocket was lit, for a 55 second burn.
At burn-out the altitude was {{Convert|150000|ft|km|1|abbr=on}} and the Mach number was 2.5. The craft then coasted to an apogee altitude of {{Convert|211400|ft|km|1|abbr=on}}.
At one point during the flight, the avionics computer froze up and had to be rebooted. Melvill flew the aircraft manually until the computer became operable again.
During reentry, the craft attained Mach 1.9 and deceleration of 3.5 g (34 m/s²). The craft switched to glider configuration at 55,000 feet (17.4 km). The craft returned to the spaceport and landed safely.
External links
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsa/n5ctrl/events04/sci/spaceship1/nb_60km.ram SpaceShipOne video footage] (RealVideo)
{{Scaled Composites}}