[SunkenCiv]

Scott Manley's pre-flight coverage includes an excellent discussion of the Karman line, and how Branson's ship does indeed reach space. Fly safe.

July is going to see both Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin send passengers to space on suborbital hops, and with a last minute tweak to the schedule its looks like Richard Branson is going to be the first founder to fly on their own spacecraft.

However, Blue Origin announced that one of their passengers is aviation legend Wally Funk who was at one point well positioned to be an astronaut, except that NASA's rules made it impossible for women to qualify.

When she flies she'll be the oldest astronaut at 82 years old, she'll also have more flight experience than anyone currently in space.

Richard Branson Tries To Beat Jeff Bezos To Space, But Jeff's Final Passenger Is Amazing Choice | Scott Manley | July 3, 2021

[SunkenCiv]

There were 8 flights to the ISS between 2001 and 2009 carrying private spaceflight participants, or, Space Tourists. Nobody has flown since then except for a couple of suborbital hops on Virgin Galactic. Now the prospect of space tourism is back in force with 4 flights scheduled to orbit and more on the horizon carrying a dozen participants to one of the most exclusive destinations.

Space Tourism Reborn : Twelve People Will Fly To Space In The Next 12 Months! | Scott Manley | May 14, 2021

[Red Badger]

Competition is good...........................