Wikipedia:2014 Virgin Galactic crash

2014 Virgin Galactic crash

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2014 Virgin Galactic crash
Accident summary
VSS Enterprise, the spacecraft involved in the accident, mated to its mothership, VMS Eve
Date	October 31, 2014
Summary	In-flight breakup; cause under investigation
Site	Mojave Desert, California, United States 35°18′N 117°58′WCoordinates: 35°18′N 117°58′W
Crew	2
Injuries (non-fatal)	1
Fatalities	1
Survivors	1
Aircraft type	Scaled Composites Model 339 SpaceShipTwo
Aircraft name	VSS Enterprise
Operator	Virgin Galactic
Registration	N339SS
Flight origin	Mojave Air and Space Port, California, United States
Destination	Mojave Air and Space Port

On October 31, 2014, VSS Enterprise, a Virgin Galactic Scaled Composites Model 339 SpaceShipTwo experimental spaceflight test vehicle, suffered a catastrophic in-flight breakup and crashed in the Mojave Desert, California, United States while performing an atmospheric test flight.^[1] A preliminary investigation has suggested that the feathering system, the ship's descent device, deployed too early, possibly causing the accident.^[2]^[3] The co-pilot was killed and the pilot is being treated for a serious shoulder injury.^[4]

Aircraft

The vehicle in the accident, VSS Enterprise, was the sole Scaled Composites Model 339 SpaceShipTwo test vehicle.^[5] It was the first of the five SpaceShipTwo craft ordered by Virgin Galactic.^[6] Since October 2010, VSS Enterprise had successfully flown 20 captive flights while remaining attached to its WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft, 31 unpowered glide-to-landing tests, and three rocket-powered test flights, each of which exceeded 50,000 feet (15,000 m) and Mach 1.2.^{[citation needed]}
The spacecraft was registered with the US Federal Aviation Administration as N339SS in the Experimental - Research and Development category as an unpowered glider.^[7]

Accident

2014 Virgin Galactic crash is located in California

The aircraft crashed near Cantil, California.

On October 31, 2014, VSS Enterprise crashed in the Mojave Desert near Cantil, southwest of Piute Ponds in California, United States.^[5]^[8]^[9] The aircraft was performing a test flight, powered flight 4 (PF04),^[10] from the Mojave Air and Space Port in which it was dropped from the WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft, VMS Eve.^[11] The test flight was the aircraft's first powered flight in nine months, and was to include the first flight testing of a new, more powerful and steadier-thrust hybrid rocket motor whose solid motor's binding agent was based on nylon instead of rubber. The flight was the aircraft's 55th, and its 35th free flight. VSS Enterprise was piloted by Peter Siebold and Michael Alsbury.^[12]^[13]
According to the NTSB briefing, SpaceShipTwo dropped from the mother ship and fired its new hybrid rocket engine normally. About eleven seconds later, the space plane then violently broke apart,^[14] substantially giving the appearance of an explosion, and creating a 5-mile (8 km) long debris field.^[15] Witnesses reported seeing parachutes before the aircraft crashed. The co-pilot, Michael Alsbury, was killed in the crash, whereas the pilot, Peter Siebold, survived with serious injuries and was transported to a local hospital.^[14] The carrier aircraft, VMS Eve, landed safely.^[11]^[16]
A preliminary investigation and cockpit video indicated that the feathering system, the ship's descent device, was deployed too early.^[2]^[3] The feathering system requires two levers to operate. The system was unlocked by Michael Alsbury, but the feathering control was not moved, indicating an uncommanded feathering.^[17] Despite considerable early conjecture that the new rocket motor was at fault, this was quickly discounted when SpaceShipTwo’s engine and propellant tanks were recovered intact, indicating there was no explosion due to either the solid (nylon-based) or liquid (nitrous oxide) components of the hybrid motor.^[18]
Regarding the possibility of pilot error being the proximate cause of the crash, acting NTSB chairman Christopher Hart said: "We are not ruling anything out. We are looking at all of these issues to determine what was the root cause of this mishap … We are looking at a number of possibilities, including that possibility [of pilot error]."^[18]

Response

Virgin Galactic CEO George T. Whitesides, in a news conference following the incident, said that “Space is hard and today was a tough day.”^[19]^[20]
Virgin founder Richard Branson said after the crash: "We do understand the risks involved and we are not going to push on blindly—to do so would be an insult to all those affected by this tragedy. We are going to learn from what went wrong, discover how we can improve safety and performance and then move forwards together," and "Space is hard, but worth it."^[21]

Investigation

NTSB Go-Team inspects a tail section of VSS Enterprise

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating the accident. A "go team" was dispatched to the accident site on October 31.^[22] The team, consisting of around fifteen personnel, arrived at the Mojave Air and Space Port on November 1. They began their investigation that day.^[23] At a news conference on November 2, NTSB acting chairman Christopher Hart said the lock–unlock lever for the vehicle's feathering mechanism was moved to the unlocked position at slightly above Mach 1. SpaceShipTwo's feathering mechanism then began moving of its own accord.^[24] The on-site investigation is scheduled to take four to seven days. It is expected to take about a year before the final report is released.^[15]