The nation’s space program needs the type of vision from a U.S. president that John F. Kennedy supplied in the race to the moon, the inventor of the first private spaceship said Thursday.

Burt Rutan said NASA has failed to capture the public’s imagination and must refocus its efforts on manned space flight.

Rutan designed SpaceShipOne, which rocketed into space twice in five days, a feat considered the first steppingstone en route to private spaceflight.

Read the complete story . (LA Times)