One person has been confirmed dead and another injured after Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo space tourism craft crashed in a California desert.
The craft was flying a manned test when it experienced what the company described as "a serious anomaly".
SpaceShipTwo is carried aloft by a jet, then launched into sub-orbit.
Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson tweeted he was flying to California "to be with the team".
Television images shot from a helicopter showed what appeared to be wreckage bearing the Virgin logo.
In a statement, Virgin Galactic said the "vehicle suffered a serious anomaly resulting in the loss of SpaceShipTwo". The aircraft that held the spaceship, known as White Knight 2, has landed safely, Virgin Galactic said.
It is expected that this tragedy will be a major setback for the company hoping to pioneer a new industry of space tourism.
Virgin Galactic has been a front-runner in the nascent space-tourism industry and Sir Richard said earlier in October he expected to see the craft make it to sub-orbital space within a few months.
More than 800 people have already paid or put down deposits for a trip on SpaceShipTwo, which costs about US$200,000 per person
Earlier in the week, an unmanned supply rocket called Antares exploded shortly after its launch from the US state of Virginia.
It was carrying cargo to the International Space Station.
SOURCE: BBC
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