One pilot was killed and another seriously injured when Virgin Galactic's prototype commercial spaceship crashed in the desert on Friday.
The accident left debris from the test plane scattered across the desert near Mojave.
Virgin Galactic said its SpaceShipTwo craft had "experienced an in-flight anomaly".
The company later added: "Virgin Galactic's partner Scaled Composites conducted a powered test flight of SpaceShipTwo earlier today. During the test, the vehicle suffered a serious anomaly resulting in the loss of SpaceShipTwo. WK2 landed safely."
No date has yet been set for the first commercial flight but hundreds of would-be space tourists have made down payments for the chance to fly.
Watch the video here and below are the tweets as it unfolded.
With files from Telegraph
Virgin Galactic @virgingalactic
We will work closely with relevant authorities to determine the cause of this accident and provide updates ASAP. (4 of 4)
1h
Virgin Galactic @virgingalactic
Our first concern is the status of the pilots, which is unknown at this time. (3 of 4)
1h
Virgin Galactic @virgingalactic
During the test, the vehicle suffered a serious anomaly resulting in the loss of SpaceShipTwo. WK2 landed safely. (2 of 4)
1h
Virgin Galactic @virgingalactic
UPDATE:Virgin Galactic's partner Scaled Composites conducted a powered test flight of #SpaceShipTwo earlier today. (1 of 4)
2h
Virgin Galactic @virgingalactic
#SpaceShipTwo has experienced an in-flight anomaly. Additional info and statement forthcoming.
