Date |
Company |
Event |
Comments |
Sep 2004 | Scaled Composites | Ansari X-Prize flight 1 | 103Km
Control issue in boost (spinning) |
Oct 2004 | Scaled Composites | Ansari X-Prize flight 2 | 112Km |
Aug 2005 | XCOR | Oshkosh Airshow, Wisconsin | XCOR’s EZ-Rocket |
Jul 2007 | Scaled Composites | Engine ground test accident; explosion – 3 scientists’ dead | A ‘cold-flow’ test that was to study oxidiser flows into a ‘balance chamber’ without rocket motor ignition |
Aug 2008 | XCOR | EAA AirVenture Oshkosh Airshow, Wisconsin | XCOR’s second prototype vehicle, the X-Racer competed at the Rocket Racing League flying 3 times |
Sep 2008 | Armadillo Aerospace | Northrup Grumman Lunar Lander Prize – flight 1 | |
Oct 2008 | Armadillo Aerospace | Northrup Grumman Lunar Lander Prize – flight 2 | |
Dec 2008 | XCOR | Firing of the 5K18 main rocket engine. | Company on hold due funding issues since 2016 |
Jan 2013 | Armadillo Aerospace | Flight Test incident | Unmanned flight test loss of control – company folded |
June 2011 | Copenhagen Suborbitals | Initial Flight Test | Unmanned sea-launch |
Aug 2011 | Blue Origin | Flight Test incident | Unmanned flight test loss of control |
Jul 2012 | Copenhagen Suborbitals | 2nd Flight Test incident | Unmanned sea-launch partial success but nosecone came off |
June 2013 | Copenhagen Suborbitals | 3rd Flight Test success | Unmanned sea-launch success to 8Km |
Oct 2014 | Scaled Composites | Powered Flight Test Accident – 1 pilot dead | Break up due to inadvertent operation of the Feathering device |
April 2015 | Blue Origin | Pretty successful Flight Test to 93.6km | New Shepard with BE-3 engine – flight took 6 minutes. Booster separated but hydraulic failure of fin controls meant hard landing |
Nov 2015 | Blue Origin | Successful Flight Test | Historic return landing of Booster (100.5km) |
Jan 2016 | Blue Origin | Successful Flight Test | ‘Launch, Land, Repeat’ (101.7km) |
Feb 2016 | Virgin Galactic | Unveiling of SSS2 VSS Unity | Will begin testing again – awaiting powered flight |
Apr 2016 | Blue Origin | Successful Flight Test | ‘Pushing the Boundaries’ (103km) |
June 2016 | Blue Origin | Successful Flight Test | One ‘Chute Out |
Oct 2016 | Blue Origin | Successful Flight Test | In-flight Escape Test |
Dec 2016 | Virgin Galactic | First Flight Test of SS2 VSS Unity | Glide – unpowered |
May 2017 | Virgin Galactic | 2nd Flight Test of SS2 VSS Unity | Glide – unpowered |
June 2017 | Virgin Galactic | 3rd Flight Test of SS2 VSS Unity | Glide – unpowered |
Aug 2017 | Virgin Galactic | 4th Flight Test of SS2 VSS Unity | Glide – unpowered, rocket motor fitted |