Tony Rusi wrote:

anyone else have any details?

from hobbyspace.com

August 7, 2003

Successful SS1 drop test... Messages flying around the
net report that the SpaceShipOne, piloted by Mike
Melvill, was dropped today from the White Knight at
45k feet (~15km) and landed safely at Mojave. Videos
and pictures should appear eventually on the Scaled
site. Congratulations to the SS1 team!

Great attention getting headline.

My first thought on reading it was that Rutan was dropping out
of the X-Prize competition. Just goes to show what things like
"worst fears" will do to me.

But he really physically dropped it and seems to be on a
good time schedule to go for powered flight for the X-Prize.

Probably after a few more drop tests, and he will have to
integrate his propulsion system into the spacecraft.

Mike Walsh