[jmcenanly]

On an earlier thread about this subject, someone compared this to a 'glorified Vomit Comet'. People do pay good money for the parabolic flights.

[gzzimlich]

I would tend to agree, and I think “spaceship” is a ridiculous misnomer for these things.

Skipping along the very edges of the earth’s atmosphere, just high enough for a good view and to make re-entry an issue isn’t going into space any more than snorkeling the patch of ocean over the Marianas trench is probing the deep.

Also, flying high enough to make re-entry an issue is not without serious risk. Perhaps Virgin can manage these risks because of simplified design issues (ie. just carrying passengers rather than having to haul cargo) but considering the shuttle disasters I certainly wouldn’t even think about sticking my neck out at any price for what is nothing more than a glorified roller coaster ride.

They can start talking about passenger spaceships when they’re doing round trips to the moon.

[PapaBear3625]

space ping

[KevinDavis]