The 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.

The white airplane called Roc, which has a wingspan the length of an American football field and is powered by six engines on a twin fuselage, took to the air shortly before 7 a.m. Pacific time (1400 GMT) and stayed aloft for more than two hours before landing safely back at the Mojave Air and Space Port as a crowd of hundreds of people cheered.

"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."

The plane is designed to drop rockets and other space vehicles weighing up to 500,000 pounds at an altitude of 35,000 feet and has been billed by the company as making satellite deployment as "easy as booking an airline flight."

Saturday's flight, which saw the plane reach a maximum speed of 189 miles per hour and altitudes of 17,000 feet, was meant to test its performance and handling qualities, according to Stratolaunch.

Allen, who co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates in 1975, announced in 2011 that he had formed the privately funded Stratolaunch.

The company seeks to cash in on higher demand in coming years for vessels that can put satellites in orbit, competing in the United States with other space entrepreneurs and industry stalwarts such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX and United Launch Alliance - a partnership between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

Stratolaunch has said that it intends to launch its first rockets from the Roc in 2020 at the earliest. Allen died in October 2018 while suffering from non-Hodgkins' lymphoma, just months after the plane's development was unveiled.

"We all know Paul would have been proud to witness today’s historic achievement," said Jody Allen, Chair of Vulcan Inc and Trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust. "The aircraft is a remarkable engineering achievement and we congratulate everyone involved."

The 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.

The 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. The white airplane called Roc, which has a wingspan the length of an American football field and is powered by six engines on a twin fuselage, took to the air shortly before 7 a.m. Pacific time (1400 GMT) and stayed aloft for more than two hours before landing safely back at the Mojave Air and Space Port as a crowd of hundreds of people cheered. "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." The plane is designed to drop rockets and other space vehicles weighing up to 500,000 pounds at an altitude of 35,000 feet and has been billed by the company as making satellite deployment as "easy as booking an airline flight." Saturday's flight, which saw the plane reach a maximum speed of 189 miles per hour and altitudes of 17,000 feet, was meant to test its performance and handling qualities, according to Stratolaunch. Allen, who co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates in 1975, announced in 2011 that he had formed the privately funded Stratolaunch. The company seeks to cash in on higher demand in coming years for vessels that can put satellites in orbit, competing in the United States with other space entrepreneurs and industry stalwarts such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX and United Launch Alliance - a partnership between Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Stratolaunch has said that it intends to launch its first rockets from the Roc in 2020 at the earliest. Allen died in October 2018 while suffering from non-Hodgkins' lymphoma, just months after the plane's development was unveiled. "We all know Paul would have been proud to witness today’s historic achievement," said Jody Allen, Chair of Vulcan Inc and Trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust. "The aircraft is a remarkable engineering achievement and we congratulate everyone involved."

World's largest plane makes first flight over California

The world&rsquo;s largest aircraft rolled out of its hangar early Thursday (IST) in the Mojave Desert, California for the first time. 
&nbsp; 
Stratolaunch is designed to release rockets that will carry satellites into space.

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.<a href="https://twitter.com/Stratolaunch">@Stratolaunch</a> came out of the hangar for fuel testing. More pictures soon! <a href="https://t.co/RCNgSpgG6W">pic.twitter.com/RCNgSpgG6W</a>
&mdash; Paul Allen (@PaulGAllen) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulGAllen/status/869959551553904640">May 31, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has spent the last six years working on the giant aircraft. 
&nbsp; 
It has a 385-foot wingspan, features six engines used by the Boeing 747, stands 50 feet tall and can carry more than 500,000 pounds of payload. 
&nbsp; 
The double-bodied airplane has the largest wingspan of any aircraft. 
&nbsp; 
<a href="http://www.stratolaunch.com/news/FirstRollout.html">According to a company statement</a>, this is the first time the aircraft has held its full weight on its 28 wheels. 
&nbsp; 
The company said they will be actively conducting ground and flight line testing at the Mojave Air and Space Port over the coming weeks and months. 
&nbsp; 
(WION)

Stratolaunch is designed to release rockets that will carry satellites into space

The world’s largest aircraft rolled out of its hangar early Thursday (IST) in the Mojave Desert, California for the first time. Stratolaunch is designed to release rockets that will carry satellites into space. .@Stratolaunch came out of the hangar for fuel testing. More pictures soon! pic.twitter.com/RCNgSpgG6W — Paul Allen (@PaulGAllen) May 31, 2017 × Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has spent the last six years working on the giant aircraft. It has a 385-foot wingspan, features six engines used by the Boeing 747, stands 50 feet tall and can carry more than 500,000 pounds of payload. The double-bodied airplane has the largest wingspan of any aircraft. According to a company statement, this is the first time the aircraft has held its full weight on its 28 wheels. The company said they will be actively conducting ground and flight line testing at the Mojave Air and Space Port over the coming weeks and months. (WION)

World's largest aircraft rolls out for first time

The world&#39;s &#39;largest aircraft&#39; embarked on its maiden flight on Wednesday, four days after a previous attempt was abandoned due to technical issues. 
 
The Airlander 10, part plane, part airship, took to the skies amid cheers and applause from crowds gathered at an airfield in Cardington, central England. 
 
The successful flight comes 85 years after another airship, the ill-fated R101, took off from the same airfield in October 1930 before crashing in France, killing 48 people and effectively ending the development of airships in Britain. 
 
Originally developed for the US army as a surveillance aircraft, the 92-metre- (302 feet-) long Airlander 10, also has potential uses in the commercial sector, such as carrying cargo, according to makers Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV). 
 
The firm, which describes the Airlander as the &quot;largest aircraft currently flying&quot;, received a British government grant of 2.5 million Pounds ($3.7 million) to develop the project. 
 
The Airlander can fly at up to 4,880 metres (6,000 feet) and reach speeds of 148 kilometres per hour (92 miles per hour), according to HAV. 
 
Filled with helium, it can stay airborne for more than two weeks unmanned and up to five days if manned. 
 
Its first flight was delayed on Sunday due to a technical fault, which was resolved in time for the aircraft to take off in clear weather conditions for Wednesday&#39;s 30-minute flight. 
 
HAV CEO Stephen McGlennan said the aircraft was cheaper and greener than helicopter technology. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s a great British innovation. It&#39;s a combination of an aircraft that has parts of normal fixed wing aircraft, it&#39;s got helicopter, it&#39;s got airship,&quot; he said. 
 
A project to develop the aircraft for surveillance use by the US military was shelved due to budget cuts. 
 
(AFP)

The Airlander can fly at up to 4,880 metres and reach speeds of 148 km per hour, according to makers Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV)

The world's 'largest aircraft' embarked on its maiden flight on Wednesday, four days after a previous attempt was abandoned due to technical issues. The Airlander 10, part plane, part airship, took to the skies amid cheers and applause from crowds gathered at an airfield in Cardington, central England. The successful flight comes 85 years after another airship, the ill-fated R101, took off from the same airfield in October 1930 before crashing in France, killing 48 people and effectively ending the development of airships in Britain. Originally developed for the US army as a surveillance aircraft, the 92-metre- (302 feet-) long Airlander 10, also has potential uses in the commercial sector, such as carrying cargo, according to makers Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV). The firm, which describes the Airlander as the "largest aircraft currently flying", received a British government grant of 2.5 million Pounds ($3.7 million) to develop the project. The Airlander can fly at up to 4,880 metres (6,000 feet) and reach speeds of 148 kilometres per hour (92 miles per hour), according to HAV. Filled with helium, it can stay airborne for more than two weeks unmanned and up to five days if manned. Its first flight was delayed on Sunday due to a technical fault, which was resolved in time for the aircraft to take off in clear weather conditions for Wednesday's 30-minute flight. HAV CEO Stephen McGlennan said the aircraft was cheaper and greener than helicopter technology. "It's a great British innovation. It's a combination of an aircraft that has parts of normal fixed wing aircraft, it's got helicopter, it's got airship," he said. A project to develop the aircraft for surveillance use by the US military was shelved due to budget cuts. (AFP)

World's 'largest aircraft' Airlander 10 gets off ground

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World's largest plane makes first flight over California

World's largest aircraft rolls out for first time

World's 'largest aircraft' Airlander 10 gets off ground