News
Air miles buys space trip
02 October 2006
A frequent traveller has collected enough air miles to take a trip into space.
Alan Watts regularly flies with Virgin Atlantic and has amassed an impressive two million points.
That means he now qualifies to be a passenger on Sir Richard Branson's proposed Virgin Galactic space craft when it makes its maiden voyage in 2009.
The trip will involve three days of preparation, before passengers board a ship which is attached to a carrier aircraft.
They will then be flown to 50,000 feet, before the ship separates from the carrier and propels itself vertically at four times the speed of sound for 30 seconds.
'When we first contacted Alan to let him know he had qualified for this unique offer I think he thought it was a prank call,' said Sir Richard.
Those onboard the ship will be travelling at 3,000 miles per hour, 75 miles above the ground and will experience weightlessness as well as being able to see the curvature of the earth.
'It's going to offer the best view in the world and I can't wait to make history,' said Mr Watts. 'The nearest I've come to space before was going on the Space Mountain ride in Florida.'
A ticket to travel with Virgin Galactic will cost in the region of $200,000 (£107,000), but the company intends to set up a lottery that will see ordinary members of the public given the chance to experience space travel.
© Adfero Ltd
Alan Watts regularly flies with Virgin Atlantic and has amassed an impressive two million points.
That means he now qualifies to be a passenger on Sir Richard Branson's proposed Virgin Galactic space craft when it makes its maiden voyage in 2009.
The trip will involve three days of preparation, before passengers board a ship which is attached to a carrier aircraft.
They will then be flown to 50,000 feet, before the ship separates from the carrier and propels itself vertically at four times the speed of sound for 30 seconds.
'When we first contacted Alan to let him know he had qualified for this unique offer I think he thought it was a prank call,' said Sir Richard.
Those onboard the ship will be travelling at 3,000 miles per hour, 75 miles above the ground and will experience weightlessness as well as being able to see the curvature of the earth.
'It's going to offer the best view in the world and I can't wait to make history,' said Mr Watts. 'The nearest I've come to space before was going on the Space Mountain ride in Florida.'
A ticket to travel with Virgin Galactic will cost in the region of $200,000 (£107,000), but the company intends to set up a lottery that will see ordinary members of the public given the chance to experience space travel.
© Adfero Ltd
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