Photo courtesy of CNN affiliate KABC
Virgin Galactic mastermind Sir Richard Branson did not display an iota of doubt about the success of his commercial spaceflight company during a press conference today, broadcasted live by CNN. SpaceShipTwo, a rocket plane meant to give high-paying customers an brief experience of spaceflight, crashed after takeoff from Mojave Air and Space Port in California, killing one pilot and severely injuring the other.
Branson spoke from outside this facility and stated, "this is obviously a very tough time" for all the aerospace companies involved: Virgin Galactic, The Spaceship Company, and Scaled Composites, and said his thoughts are with "the brave Scaled pilots." He added, "we are determined to find out what went wrong, and are working with the authorities to get that information," but could not give any details. The plan is to "discover how we can improve safety and performance, and then move forward together," he said. "All 400 engineers who work here, and I think most people in the world, would love to see the dream living on."
Branson is offering a refund of his $250,000 ticket to space, but noted that his passengers are sticking around, and he even had someone purchase a ride on the upcoming new-and-improved SpaceShipTwo after the crash.
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