Paul Allen Shows Off World's Largest Airplane

(RTTNews) - Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft Corp (MSFT), has just unveiled the world's largest airplane that has a wingspan longer than a football field.

The massive plane, called Stratolaunch, rolled out of its hangar - for the first time ever - at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, California on May 31. The aircraft, meant to carry rockets rather than passengers, was moved out of the hangar to conduct aircraft fueling tests.

This marks the completion of the initial aircraft construction phase, and the beginning of the aircraft ground and flight testing phase.

The aircraft weighs 500,000 pounds and is the world's largest plane by wingspan, measuring 385 feet. By comparison, a National Football League field spans only 360 feet.

The aircraft is 238 feet long from nose to tail and stands 50 feet tall from the ground to the top of the vertical tail. It also has 28 wheels and six 747 jet engines.

The Stratolaunch aircraft is designed for a maximum takeoff weight of 1.3 million pounds, implying that it is capable of carrying payloads up to approximately 550,000 pounds.

Stratolaunch Systems said last fall that it has partnered with Orbital ATK to initially launch a single Orbital ATK Pegasus XL vehicle with the capability to launch up to three Pegasus vehicles in a single sortie mission.

The Pegasus XL is an air-launched rocket capable of delivering small satellites, weighing as much as 1,000 pounds, to orbit.

Stratolaunch Systems believes air launch is a cheaper and more efficient way to get satellites into space than conventional vertical rocket launches, particularly due to the reduced mass, thrust and cost of the rocket.

"We have already started preparations for launch vehicle delivery to our Mojave facilities. We're actively exploring a broad spectrum of launch vehicles that will enable us to provide more flexibility to customers," Stratolaunch Systems stated.

The company added that it is on track to perform its first launch demonstration as early as 2019.

Allen and Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit believe they can reduce the cost of launching small satellites to space by providing convenient, reliable and routine access to low Earth orbit or LEO.