[red-beard]

MOJAVE, CA (CNN) - A lock-unlock lever on the doomed Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo was moved earlier than it should have been, the National Transportation Safety Board stated in its latest update on the investigation
Christopher Hart, the NTSB acting chair, explained why that action is so important to determining what happened.

"The spaceship was released normally, and after it was released - shortly after it was released, the rocket engine ignited. About nine seconds after the engine ignited, the telemetry data told us, showed us that the feather parameters changed from 'lock' to 'unlock,'" Hart said.

"Now, in order for feathering - this action to be commanded by the pilots, two actions must occur. One is the lock-unlock handle must be moved from 'lock' to 'unlock,' and No. 2 is, the feathering handle must be moved to the feather position," he said.

"Approximately two seconds after the feathering parameters indicated that the lock-unlock lever was moved from 'lock' to 'unlock,' the feathers moved toward the extended position, the deployed position, even though the feather handle itself had not been moved. And this occurred at a speed just above approximately Mach 1.0. Shortly after the feathering occurred, the telemetry data terminated and the video data terminated."

The co-pilot of SpaceShipTwo died in Friday's accident over the southern California desert. The pilot remains hospitalized. He has not yet been interviewed by investigators.

NTSB authorities stress their investigation will take many months, and no conclusions should be drawn from these early findings

Spaceship 'feathering' mechanism moved early, preliminary findin - NBC12 - Richmond, VA News