NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

RELEASE : 04-199 NASA Administrator Lauds Successful Human Space Flight The following is a statement from NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe about the first sub-orbital flight of a person on a private spacecraft.

"We applaud the remarkable achievement of Burt Rutan, Paul Allen and test pilot Mike Melvill following the first successful suborbital flight of SpaceShipOne.

"Not unlike the first U.S. and Soviet space travelers in 1961, and China's first successful spaceflight last October, these private citizens are pioneers in their own right. They are doing much to open the door to a new marketplace offering the experience of weightlessness and suborbital space flight to the public.

"We congratulate the SpaceShipOne team and wish all those who may follow safe flights."

For information about NASA's programs of exploration and discovery, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

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