World's largest plane flies record high

Giant cargo plane Roc completed 7th test flight with record altitude - 8,200 m.

Roc aircraft in 7th flight test.

The latest test flight on June 16 of the Roc aircraft lasted 3 hours over the Mojave desert. The aim was to test the in-flight performance of the recently installed pylons on Roc aircraft, which are used to launch smaller supersonic aircraft from high altitudes and into the air at speeds above Mach 5 (6,174 km). /H).

Initially, the California company Stratolaunch designed the Roc to carry rockets and satellites into the stratosphere, from where the vehicles would fire their engines into low Earth orbit. A recent change in strategy has turned the world's largest aircraft model with six Boeing 747 engines, two side-by-side fuselages and a 117-meter wingspan, into a supersonic research vehicle carrier.

In 2020, the company revealed the first image of Roc through the Talon-A design. The vehicle is designed for fast and repeatable supersonic flights with the ability to take off and land on runways, in addition to launching from Roc aircraft. Stratolaunch introduced a recent test version of Talon-A last month, called TA-O. At the same time, the company also equipped Roc with a suspension tower to bring Talon-A into the air. Made from aluminum and carbon fiber, this suspension tower has a winch system to get the Talon-A into position and weighs about 3,629 kg and is 4.3 m long.

Since adding pylons to the aircraft, the company's testing program has focused on vetting the new configuration. After integrating the TA-O test vehicle on a Roc aircraft for the first time, the company is planning to launch the machine in flight later this year, according to Dr. Zachary Krevor, chief executive officer and owner President of Stratolaunch.