STOCKHOLM, Sweden -- An unmanned prototype of a European space shuttle glided safely back to Earth on Saturday after being dropped from nearly 8,000 feet up by a helicopter.
Guided by Global Positioning System satellites, the German-designed EADS Phoenix was dropped by a heavy-duty helicopter over Sweden at 9:45 a.m. and "landed perfectly" 90 seconds later on a test runway north of Stockholm, a project spokeswoman said.
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The Phoenix shuttle, along with the Ariane 5 rocket, represents the European Space Agency's hope for sending astronauts into space, but project managers concede a full-size version will not be ready until sometime between 2015 and 2020.
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The prototype is just under 23 feet long, weighs 2,640 pounds and has a wingspan of 13 feet. It's one-sixth the size of the actual planned vehicle.
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