Blink and you'll miss it: The first footage of hypersonic spacecraft's ill-fated test flight is released

The 13,000mph unmanned aircraft of the future took off for a crucial test flight from a Californian rocket pad earlier this month.

It travelled to the edge of space and was due to glide back down to Earth at roughly four miles per second but all contact was lost and the craft was thought to have crashed.

First footage: The Falcon HTV-2 (circled) can be seen in the video streaking across the sky at Mach 20 shortly before it crashed into the sea

Falcon HTV-2: The aircraft can travel at 20 times the speed of sound - or 13,000mph. It is part of research effort by Darpa to one day make long-duration hypersonic flight a reality

This still from a video released by Darpa shows the difference in speed between the Falcon, soaring through the centre, a C-5 (right) and an F-18 fighter jet (left)

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