The world's largest airplane with a wingspan of 117 meters made a historic flight (video)

The aviation giant Roc, developed by Stratolaunch, has recently made a breakthrough flight. This unique aircraft is distinguished by its huge wing, which is 117 meters long and combines two fuselage parts. Its purpose is to serve as a platform for launching rockets into space.

According to IflScience, Roc has successfully completed its historic flight. It is known that the aircraft weighs 227 tons without cargo and reaches 590 tons with a full load. Six Pratt & Whitney PW4056 engines give it the ability to lift heavy loads.

Why this flight is historic

The Roc aircraft was the first to fly with a payload at hypersonic speed. The route was over the Pacific Ocean, where the Talon-A spacecraft, a compact version of the shuttle, was launched. After separating from the airplane, Talon-A activated its engines to perform the historic flight.

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Stratolaunch maintains intrigue by providing limited information about the flight, but confirms its success. It is noted that the TA-1 spacecraft approached a hypersonic speed of Mach 5, which is five times faster than sound, collecting a significant amount of data. After this test, Stratolaunch plans to test the next generation spacecraft, TA-2, this year.

Stratolaunch was created in 2011 by Paul Allen, a Microsoft co-founder and aviation enthusiast, with the goal of creating a large-scale missile carrier aircraft. The project has come a long way, and now the wings of the aircraft have a span of 117 meters, which is almost twice the size of a Boeing 747.

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