The News Minute | November 1, 2014 | 8:22pm ISTLos Angeles : A passenger rocket plane developed by Virgin Galactic's crashed Friday after suffering an "in-flight anomaly" during a powered test flight over the US state of California, the company said."SpaceShipTwo has experienced an in-flight anomaly. Additional info and statement forthcoming," Xinhua quoted Virgin as saying on Twitter, giving no further details. Sir Richard Branson, who is the founder of the Virgin Group also tweeted about the incident and mentioned that he was on his way to be with the Team. Writing this on way to Mojave to join @VirginGalactic, TSC & Scaled teams. Shocked & saddened by tragic loss http://t.co/kJGG0NQTNf— Richard Branson (@richardbranson) November 1, 2014All our thoughts are with the brave pilots & families affected by today's events in Mojave http://t.co/kJGG0NQTNf @VirginGalactic— Richard Branson (@richardbranson) November 1, 2014Two pilots were on board when the catastrophic explosion and crash happened. After the anomaly, at least one chute was reportedly sighted over the Mojave Air and Space Port in California, the base from which SpaceShipTwo and its WhiteKnightTwo carrier plane took off.One person has been confirmed dead and the other seriously injured in the incident. The craft, which is still in its test phase and normally carries two pilots, had been carried aloft on a bigger aircraft known as WhiteKnightTwo and then released for a test of its rocket engine.Earlier today, Virgin Galactic's spacecraft crashed during a test flight: http://t.co/YeTGEIm6pn pic.twitter.com/CsT5j5E3Aw— Forbes Tech News (@ForbesTech) November 1, 2014SpaceShipTwo is designed to carry two pilots and six passengers on suborbital spaceflights. Tickets to ride the spaceship cost $250,000 each. Some of the Hollywood celebrities like Brad Pitt, Leonardo Dicaprio and Tom Hanks have all signed up for the initial flight. The suborbital flight has been under development at Mojave Air and Spaceport in the desert northeast of Los Angeles. Sir Richard Branson also tweeted as saying 'Space is hard-but worth it'. Space is hard - but worth it. We will persevere and move forward together http://t.co/kJGG0NQTNf— Richard Branson (@richardbranson) November 1, 2014With inputs from IANS