Scaled Composites unveiled its privately funded manned space program here on Apr. 18, displaying largely completed hardware designed to take three people in a suborbital trajectory to 100 km. (62 mi.) altitude. It is in essence a version of the 1960s NASA/USAF X-15 rocket plane program but with less severe aerodynamic and thermal stresses.

Scaled President Burt Rutan said the main goal of the program, called "Tier One" internally, is to show that people can fly to space for very low cost. "All decisions in design focus on the absolute minimum recurring cost," he said. "We use the lowest technology possible, not the highest."

The spaceship should have enough performance to meet the X-Prize, a privately funded competition requiring that three people be taken to 100 km. and that the ship repeat the flight within two weeks (www.xprize.org). But Rutan is focused beyond the X-Prize. "The big message is not to reach the X-Prize, but to show that space tourism is affordable."

An undisclosed customer is funding the program, and this includes multiple flights to 100 km. A rough estimate by Aviation Week & Space Technology is that the program will cost $20-30 million. The customer may be revealed when the craft reaches space, Rutan said. Captive carry of the spaceship will occur "very soon," signifying it is ready for gliding flight. "I would like to do a manned spaceflight before the Wright Brothers' anniversary," he said.

The overall system includes: