A malfunction during the most recent test flight of the private spacecraft SpaceShipTwo sent the vehicle hurtling out of control until its crew could stabilize the craft for a safe landing. 
 
 The issue provided some heart-stopping moments for its airborne crew and ground handlers, but also allowed the vehicle's owner, Virgin Galactic, to showcase the craft's safety features. 
 
 The commercial space plane made its 16th glide flight on Sept. 29, following a hiatus for hangar work. For the first time, SpaceShipTwo carried a three-person crew — two pilots and a flight test engineer. [ Gallery — SpaceShipTwo Makes First Glide Flight ] 
 
 To begin, SpaceShipTwo was lifted to high altitude by its carrier plane, WhiteKnightTwo. After a clean release from WhiteKnightTwo, SpaceShipTwo immediately entered a rapid descent. Springing into action, the crew deployed the ship's novel feather re-entry system. 
 
 SpaceShipTwo's ability to feather its tail section is a safety feature that increases the vehicle's stability during atmospheric re-entry. Akin to the flight of a shuttlecock in badminton, the feather system allows SpaceShipTwo to rely on aerodynamics and the laws of physics to control speed and altitude. 
 
 The glide flight lasted a brief 7 minutes and 15 seconds. 
 
 Downward pitch rate 
 
 "Upon release, the spaceship experienced a downward pitch rate that caused a stall of the tails. The crew followed procedure, selecting the feather mode to revert to a benign condition. The crew then de-feathered and had a nominal return to base," according to an updated flight log posted by Scaled Composites, builder of the WhiteKnightTwo /SpaceShipTwo launch system. 
 
 Scaled Composites is constructing the private spaceship fleet for Virgin Galactic, a spaceline company for suborbital space tourism backed by U.K. entrepreneur Richard Branson. 
 
 "Great flying by the team and good demo of feather system," Scaled officials wrote in the flight log. 
 
 According to one observer of the craft's rapid descent, "It dropped like a rock and went straight down. Typically, it takes 11 minutes to land, but this time it was only seven minutes before they were on the ground. It was a nail-biter … but that's how you learn." 
 
 Flight envelope 
 
 George Whitesides, Virgin Galactic's chief executive officer and president, said the glide flight included a third seat flight test engineer onboard SpaceShipTwo for the first time. "A good capability for us to have for this phase of test," he told SPACE.com. "Yes, apparently the tails exhibited stall characteristics in the test — which was a steep nose down maneuver." 
 
 Whitesides confirmed that SpaceShipTwo was ultimately able to carry out a nominal landing. 
 
 "Scaled is looking at the data now, but doesn't anticipate any major issues," Whitesides said. "This is why we flight test, to fully explore the aerodynamic flight envelope." 
 
 NASA shuttle leader joins team 
 
 Meanwhile, in other Virgin Galactic news, the company has announced the appointment of former NASA executive Mike Moses as its new vice president of operations. 
 
 Moses' NASA career included serving at the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida as the launch integration manager from 2008 until the landing of the final space shuttle mission in July 2011. He was responsible for supervising all shuttle processing activities from landing through launch, and for reviewing major milestones, including final readiness for flight. 
 
 According to a Virgin Galactic statement, Moses will develop and lead the team responsible for Virgin Galactic spaceship operations and logistics, flight crew operations, customer training and spaceport ground operations, primarily focusing on overall operational safety and risk management. 
 
 Leonard David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. He is a winner of this year's National Space Club Press Award and a past editor-in-chief of the National Space Society's Ad Astra and Space World magazines. He has written for SPACE.com since 1999. ||||| Just before SpaceShipTwo broke apart in midair Friday, the tail lifted prematurely after the co-pilot changed the aerodynamic controls, the leader of the National Transportation Safety Board said Sunday night. 
 
 Two levers were supposed to be pulled when the spacecraft reached Mach 1.4, allowing an action called "feathering" -- which lifts the tail to slow descent and create drag. Instead, a video in the cockpit and other data showed that one of the levers was unlocked early at Mach 1.0, NTSB Acting Chairman Christopher Hart told reporters. 
 
 About two seconds later, the tail moved into the extended position, even though a second "feather" handle was not moved, Hart said. 
 
 "Pilot error is a possibility," Hart said. "We're a long way from finding cause." 
 
 The investigation into the fatal crash in the desert about 20 miles northeast of Mojave is to continue Monday, and he has said a final report could take as long as year. 
 
 NTSB investigators found the plane’s fuel tanks, oxidizer tanks and engine Sunday among the wreckage, Hart said. All those parts were intact, with no signs of having burned through or of being breached, he said. 
 
 Federal investigators are combing the Nevada desert to try and figure out what caused a Virgin Galactic space plane to explode during a test flight last week. Federal investigators are combing the Nevada desert to try and figure out what caused a Virgin Galactic space plane to explode during a test flight last week. SEE MORE VIDEOS 
 
 Also on Sunday, Virgin Galactic’s chief executive said the company was planning to finish work on a second rocket plane by year's end. 
 
 “The second spaceship is very advanced in its construction,” George Whitesides said. “We need to work closely with the NTSB … to work out as rapidly as we can what happened, and then to move forward. We’re hopeful we can make rapid progress.” 
 
 Friday's test flight of SpaceShipTwo was the first time it was to fly by firing a new rocket motor using a plastic-based fuel – leading to speculation that the engine may have been a factor in the crash. 
 
 Until May, SpaceShipTwo had used a different motor that burned a rubber-based fuel. 
 
 Whitesides said he couldn’t talk about the accident during the investigation. When asked if the company would continue testing the new engine on the ground, he said, “I think the short answer is ‘yes.’” 
 
 The engine had passed ground tests before Friday’s flight that satisfied engineers who determined it was “qualified” to be tested in flight. That process, he said, involved “a small number of firings in a row to make sure you get the same result.” 
 
 “We have qualified the engine that we were putting into flight tests,” he said. “I’m sure that we will continue that work.” 
 
 He added, “As we’ve always said, we expect to continue to improve all our systems as time goes on just like any manufacturer would.” 
 
 In a statement released Sunday, Virgin Galactic said "no one wants to know more than we do" what happened on Friday. 
 
 "We are dedicated to opening the space frontier, while keeping safety as our 'North Star,'" the statement said. "This has guided every decision we have made over the past decade, and any suggestion to the contrary is categorically untrue. ... Everything we do is to pursue the vision of accessible and democratized space – and to do it safely." 
 
 Whiteside said Virgin Galactic had spent $500 million so far in its quest to fly tourists into space. The company had insurance, he said, that would help cover the cost of Friday’s crash. 
 
 Test pilot Michael Alsbury, 39, died in the crash. His body was found near the fuselage of the main wreckage, authorities said. 
 
 Surviving pilot Peter Siebold, 43, suffered a shoulder injury and was "alert and talking with his family and doctors" on Saturday, according to Scaled Composites, the company that designed SpaceShipTwo. 
 
 Times staff writer Petersen reported from Mojave and Raab from Los Angeles. 
 
 
 
 Follow @MelodyPetersen and @raablauren on Twitter
– SpaceShipTwo's most recent test flight turned into a more extensive test than the private spacecraft's makers had bargained for. A malfunction sent the Virgin Galactic spacecraft briefly hurtling out of control—but then its three-person crew stabilized it for a safe landing, MSNBC reports. The glitch allowed Virgin to showcase the SpaceShipTwo's safety features, including the “feathered" tail's ability to slow the spacecraft down. "It dropped like a rock and went straight down," said one observer. "Typically, it takes 11 minutes to land, but this time it was only seven minutes before they were on the ground. It was a nail-biter—but that's how you learn." The vehicle, designed to take tourists on short jaunts into space, was lifted to high altitude by carrier vehicle WhiteKnightTwo, which will also be used to lift a NASA-backed space taxi for testing next year. Virgin Galatic, meanwhile, hit a major new milestone in its space travel plans yesterday by moving into a $209 million New Mexico "Spaceport America" hangar and terminal in Las Cruces, reports the Los Angeles Times.