stratolaunch plane YouTube/SciNews

Forget the Airbus A380: the giant passenger plane is a mere sparrow compared with the world's largest plane, a monster-sized, dual-hulled aircraft which measures 385ft from wingtip to wingtip.

The aircraft, commissioned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, is designed as a flying rocket launcher, which will save money by cutting down on the amount of fuel needed to launch cargo into space.

The Stratolaunch was wheeled out of its hangar for the first time yesterday as the team behind it began aircraft fuelling tests, its makers said.

The plane is 50 feet tall and 238 feet long, with 28 wheels and six boaeing 747 engines. It's the largest plane built since Howard Hughes' huge wooden Spruce Goose, which boasted a 320ft wingspan, with capacity to carry a rocket with a payload of more than 500,000 lbs.

"Over the coming weeks and months, we'll be actively conducting ground and flightline testing at the Mojave Air and Space Port," said Jean Floyd, chief executive of Stratolaunch.


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