There is actually an opportunity for a world record here :
The current Altitude World Record for an Aircraft Launched by a Carrier
Airplane, is somewhere around 314,000ft, held by Bob White with the X-15
since 1962, and apparently still good (I couldn't confirm that on the FAI
website, but american publications still consider this a valid World Record
ratified by the FAI).

The top of the atmosphere is defined as 328,000ft, above which Space begins,
so any flight above 328,000ft is actually a space flight, and the
performances of such flights fall into a different category.
The kick is that technically, the "Altitude" world record in the above
category, can only be broken ONCE MORE, because there has to be a difference
of at least 3% for a new attempt to be valid.

In other words, whoever breaks this record will hold it forever :
To break the current mark, one has to fly at between 324000ft and 328000ft,
and once that is done, it isn't possible to up the mark by another 3%
without getting to space (in which case other X-15 flights would have broken
this record, because the X-15 was eventually flown as "high" as 354,200ft by
Joe Walker).

While it may sound easy for most pilots, this 4000ft window is quite narrow
for a rocket plane, that shuts down its engine while still on the way up,
then "coasts" to an apogee that isn't very easy to predict because of all
the variables involved.

We will all have to wait and see.



"John Jones" wrote in message
...
Looks like Burt Rutan at Scaled Composites is going
to get the record for the highest, non-government glider
flight on June 21 when he sends his glider (via rocket
power) into space.

Details at http://www.xprize.org/

Calling for return glide of less than 30 minutes to
get back down from over 300,000 feet. Sounds like
the pilot can thermal as well as I can...that is, like
I am flying a brick.