History was made when the world's first privately built spaceship, SpaceShip One, left the Civilian Flight Test Center at Mojave, California, attached to the belly of the White Knight. After circling to 47,000 feet, SpaceShip One was released and pilot Mike Melvill fired its rocket, boosting it to over 62 miles (100 kilometers) above the surface of the Earth, qualifying it as the world's first privately built spaceship. Sue, Bobby and I were there in person to witness history.

White Knight and SpaceShip One circled for nearly an hour. When Space Ship One separated, its rocket fired for approximately a minute and a half, boosting it to nearly three times the speed of sound. At one point, there was a minor trim control problem, causing the final altitude to be 328,491 feet instead of the target 360,000 feet, but still high enough to qualify as a space flight. We were able to monitor radio transmissions on a scanner, including the countdown to rocket firing, and were able to see its trail up the sky until engine cutoff. Following that, the pilot experienced 3 1/2 minutes of weightlessness before beginning his high speed dive back to earth. We were treated to a sonic boom as he began his nearly half hour glide.

SpaceShip One was built by Burt Rutan and Scaled Composites, who have been building "next generation" aircraft for years, including Voyager, the only aircraft in history to have travelled around world the non-stop without refueling. Note: SpaceShip One's registration - N328KF - representing 328,000 Feet. It is registered as an experimental glider. Its rocket engine is powered by laughing gas (nitrous oxide) and rubber (hydroxy-terminated polybutadiene).

How do I feel about the flight of Space Ship One? I have spent over 2500 hours as pilot in command of small airplanes. I feel fortunate to have had such a blessed life, but those moments I enjoy far above the Earth are the result of work done and risks taken by pioneers in aviation - the Wrights, Curtiss, Lindbergh, Piper, Cessna, and many, many more. As each frontier is explored and conquered, new pioneers are needed to open fresh frontiers. Burt Rutan and Mike Melvill are expanding the boundaries of aviation to new heights. There are those who say the events of June 21, 2004 were overrated. Within a day CNN had returned to their full-time coverage of murder trials, war, and political scandal, but for a shining moment, thousands of people on the high desert of California were rooting for the new pioneers. To me, it was a symbol of hope for the future. Man can not live without hope. Flight is a gift from God.

Gene Seibel