BURT RUTAN and the SpaceShipOne team at Scaled Composites captured the $10 million Ansari X Prize for the first private manned spacecraft to exceed an altitude of 100 kilometers-considered the edge of space-twice in a 14-day period. "Manned space flight is not only for governments to do," said Rutan. "We proved it can be done by a small company operating with limited resources and a few dozen dedicated employees. The next 25 years will be a wild ride; one that history will note was done for everyone's benefit." Rutan founded Scaled Composites in 1982. He designed 46 different flying aircraft, won the Collier Trophy twice, and won more than 100 awards for aerospace design and development, including the Bob Hoover Freedom Award and the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy. Time magazine named Rutan one of its "100 Most Influential People in the World" in 2004. Five of his aircraft are on display in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's collections.
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