Reuters reports that the Federal Aviation Administration issued a license for a commercially sponsored suborbital manned flight to Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites.
With the license Scaled Composites' is free to begin test-flying SpaceShipOne at the edge of space, an altitude of about 60 miles.
SpaceShipOne broke the sound barrier on its first powered flight on Dec. 17, 2003, the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers historic flight over Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. In a more recent unpowered flight SpaceShipOne featured a thermal protection system, suggesting that more powered flights will occur soon.
Scaled Composites is competing in the X Prize, a privately run contest to send a reusable craft carrying three people on a suborbital round-trip reaching an altitude of 62.5 miles. The first group to accomplish that and repeat the feat within two weeks will be awarded $10 million.
Twenty-seven contestants representing seven countries have already registered for the X Prize contest, modeled on the $25,000 Orteig Prize that Charles Lindbergh claimed by flying solo from New York to Paris in 1927.
UPDATE: SpaceShipOne, in its second powered flight, reached an altitude of 105,000 ft. and a speed of approximately Mach 2.
"105,000 feet down, 223,000 feet to go!" exclaimed an excited onlooker, as he watched the ship fly overhead.
UPDATE II: At VodkaPundit Will Collier sums up the licensing of SpaceShipOne nicely, posting Heinlein would be proud.
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