They did ground tests last week, but yesterday morning WhiteKnightTwo, the strange looking double-wide plane that will carry SpaceShipTwo and its cargo on suborbital spaceflights, finally took off on its maiden voyage. Four Pratt & Whitney Canada PW308A engines carried the craft into the air.

The flight didn’t last long, just under an hour, and apparently all went perfectly according to plan. The design is pretty amazing and makes we realize that we may just be living in the beginning of Star Trek times, at long last. Soon they’ll be building the Enterprise in orbit.

What might the future of flight look like? The folks at Finnair have a pretty good idea. They have five future aircraft concepts for the year 2093. As you might expect, all the aircrafts are eco-friendly and materials used in the making are 100 percent recyclable. I have to say they look awesome.

How about a zero-emission supersonic aircraft, designed for long-hauls? AV windows that offer zoomable views of the sky or the earth? How about a charter aircraft with turning engines in front that can glide and take-off vertically? Some even feature hologram theaters, restaurants, and bars, shops, a beauty parlor, a first-aid station, and gymnasiums. The future of flight is looking pretty awesome. I’d be willing to bet that most of their ideas will be realized by 2093.

The Martin Jetpack is defined by the FAA as an “experimental ultralight airplane, equipped with a gas-powered, V-4 piston engine and two ducted fans that provide the lift.” The jetpack was unveiled among an enthusiastical crowd in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It will allow the flyer to hover for about 30 minutes and rise to 8,000 feet.

It will cost you $100,000 and you’ll have to complete 15 hours of flight training as well as undergo a “safety screening.” I’m getting flashbacks of 70’s TV. Back when it seemed that everyone used a jetpack in at least one episode of their show. I can just see that trend being revived today. How would you like to see House tossing his cane and taking off? Video below.

The truth is out there. I’m still waiting for Mulder and Scully’s official word on Crop circles, but at least some recent UFO reports can be blamed on this extremely bright disc. This thing is the brainchild of artist Peter Coffin and it was made in collaboration with London-based Cinimod Studio.

It measures in at 7-meters and is constructed of aluminum covered with 3,000 super bright programmable LEDs. It isn’t just pretty, it has more going for it. Like an on-board 6kw generator for power. How is it controlled? Remotely via SMS. Below is a video showing the craft flying off the coast of Sopot, Poland on July 4th.

Remember that stealth aircraft mouse we told you about last year? It’s just zipped back into our skies with new color options. I still think it’s coolest in black. Anyway I know that many of you spend your days reliving scenes from Top Gun.

What better way to keep your friendlies and boogies straight then by having more colors? This way you can keep track of Jester and Maverick and whatever the hell other names they used in that 80’s movie. It beats the plain old mouse you’re using now right? Go get one for $18. And try to get that “Ride into the danger zone” song out of your head.

iPhones will now control aircrafts from the ground, thanks to some geeky iPhone app developers. Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley have apparently broken Apple’s terms and conditions when they used the iPhone to guide unmanned aircraft. The Apple Software Developer Kit agreement states that the applications are not to be designed or marketed for automatic or autonomous control of aircraft.

Too late now. And why would they care anyway, they’re having way too much fun. The team uses Mobile Safari to input coordinates and then selects tasks for the unmanned flight that are relayed to the aircraft through a web server. Check out the video below.

Harbin Smart Special Aerocraft is a Chinese company that’s developed a flying saucer capable of climbing up to 1,000 yards at a speed of 50 mph. It can remain in the air for about 40 minutes.

The company spent 12 years and $4.1 million dollars to develop the flying saucer, but they abducted no one. Honest. Hopefully we Americans and the Russians will get in on the act too. That way, we can perfect the Flying Saucer and give some payback to alien worlds. Let’s see how they like the ole anal probe!

This beauty will cost you $139,000 and it can take off and land on water and/or dry land. The controls are more like a car than an airplane, which should make it easy for you to get around. It’s fold up wings make it easy to store this baby in a garage or even tow it behind your car while on vacation. It has a 32 foot wingspan otherwise. It should be available for sale in 2010.

It’s the ideal vehicle for the traveler of the future. Remember, we were supposed to be flying around in our own planes by now. The plane conforms to the FAA’s new Light Sport Aircraft category, which means that it’s restricted to flying in daylight, under 10,000 feet with a top speed of 140mph. I’m sure it’s a breeze to learn how to fly it, since you can get the Pilot License required to fly it with about 20 hours of flight training. Awesome. I’m gonna go clean the garage.