Howard Wolff of Wimberley Allison Tong & Goo and John Brodie-Good.PACK your moonboots and prepare to take a "giant leap for mankind". Space travel is closer than you think.
The technology is already here, it's the cost that's keeping our feet on the ground, according to Wildwings Travel UK managing director John Brodie-Good.
There is a strong interest in space travel worldwide. Japan, Germany and the United States are 'space tourism ready', says Brodie-Good.
"In the USA 15 million tourists visited land-based space attractions last year, 34 per cent of the population are interested in a two-week trip aboard the space shuttle and 42 per cent are interested in travelling in a space cruise vessel. The issues to be addressed are safety, comfort, legal issues, regulatory bodies like the FAA and CAA to grant licenses and of course cost." he says.
Space Adventures Inc. offers 'Steps into Space' programmes, including shuttle launch tours by former astronauts, zero gravity flights in Russian cosmonaut-training aircraft and a journey to the edge of space in a supersonic jet aircraft.
However, eager space travellers will have to wait until 2005 for a sub-orbital space flight. Passengers will be flown through the atmosphere to a point where they experience weightlessness and can view the earth from space. This 35 to 90 minute flight will cost about US$100,000 per person.
If you can't wait that long Wildwings Travel can organise an orbital space trip on missions to the new International Space Station. Strict medical requirements and three to six months training plus the US$15 million fare will guarantee your place.