Stratolaunch’s Roc airplane was built to serve as an inflight launch platform. [Courtesy Stratolaunch]
Key Takeaways:
Stratolaunch's Roc, the world's largest airplane, completed taxi tests for the first time in eight months at California's Mojave Air & Spaceport.
These tests were conducted to ensure all vehicle systems, communications, and subsystems are functioning properly in preparation for its next test flight, expected within weeks.
Later this year, the Roc is scheduled to act as a midair launch platform for hypersonic test vehicles, assisting the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency in understanding hypersonic weapon engagement.
For the first time in eight months, the world’s largest airplane—Stratolaunch’s Roc—performed taxi tests Thursday at California’s Mojave Air & Spaceport, north of Los Angeles.
The one-of-a-kind, twin-fuselage, six-engine behemoth was spotted rolling down the facility’s 12,000-foot runway, in preparation for its next flight, which is expected within several weeks.
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Thom is a former senior editor for FLYING. Previously, his freelance reporting appeared in aviation industry magazines. Thom also spent three decades as a TV and digital journalist at CNN’s bureaus in Washington and Atlanta, eventually specializing in aviation. He has reported from air shows in Oshkosh, Farnborough and Paris. Follow Thom on Twitter @thompatterson.
