Great deal of evidence may exist to help Virgin spaceship crash probe, say officials

Members of the National Transportation Safety Board arrive before dawn at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mohave, California on Nov 1, 2014. Federal officials said on Saturday that a great deal of evidence may exist to help investigators pinpoi
Members of the National Transportation Safety Board arrive before dawn at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mohave, California on Nov 1, 2014. Federal officials said on Saturday that a great deal of evidence may exist to help investigators pinpoint what caused a Virgin Galactic passenger spaceship to crash during a test flight in California, killing one pilot and injuring the other. -- PHOTO: AFP

SEATTLE (REUTERS) - Federal officials said on Saturday a great deal of evidence may exist to help investigators pinpoint what caused a Virgin Galactic passenger spaceship to crash during a test flight in California, killing one pilot and injuring the other.

Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board, who arrived at the crash site in the Mohave Desert early on Saturday, said they were unsure if the spacecraft contained a "black box" data recorder.

Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo crashed on Friday during its first powered test flight since January, scattering debris over the Mojave Desert, 150km north of Los Angeles.

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