Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo crashed Friday after special tail “feathers” meant to increase drag deployed early, BBC reports. One pilot unlocked the feather system, but it then deployed without a command.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is conducting the investigation into the doomed flight, has not yet stated if the feathers caused the crash. On Friday, scrutiny was placed on the never-before-flown mix of fuel Virgin Galactic has used. The Wall Street Journal reported SpaceShipTwo’s fuel tanks and engines were recovered “largely intact,” making an explosion less likely.

“If there was a huge explosion, it didn’t occur, I didn’t see it,” Mojave Spaceport CEO Stuart Witt, who was at the scene during the crash, said at a press conference Friday.

The pilot that died in the crash has since been identified as Michael Alsbury. He was a pilot for Scaled Composites for 13 years. He flew SpaceShipTwo during its first-ever powered flight…

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Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo Has Crashed

Posted on November 1, 2014 by particularkev

Updated: Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo space plane crashes with two pilots on board, one killed

Posted on November 1, 2014 by particularkev

Gigaom

Virgin Galactic‘s SpaceShipTwo crashed during a test flight today over the Mojave Desert of Southern California, resulting in its destruction. One pilot is dead and another seriously injured, officials confirmed at a press conference Friday afternoon.

During the test, the vehicle suffered a serious anomaly resulting in the loss of SpaceShipTwo. WK2 landed safely. (2 of 4)

— Virgin Galactic (@virgingalactic) October 31, 2014

An ABC report showed the plane in pieces on the ground.

Photo of #SpaceShipTwo debris from @ABC23News' helicopter. Live stream here: turnto23.com/news/virgin-ga…http://t.co/cKkskNUImM—
Cory Bergman (@corybe) October 31, 2014

“Space is hard and today was a tough day,” Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides said at the press conference. “We are going to be supporting the investigation as we figure out what happened today, and we’re going to get through it. The future rests in many ways on hard days like this. But we…

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