June 21, 2004

Glenn Mahone/Bob Jacobs 
Headquarters, Washington 
(Phone: 202/358-1898/1600) 

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 

	
-end-