West Oehmig will never forget the first time he saw it. It was in 2009 when he stood in the Mojave Desert among 800 VIPs, journalists and fellow travel agents – all shivering in the December night air under a maze of tents, swirling chilled vodka in glasses made of ice. After hearing speeches from Sir Richard Branson, governors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bill Richardson, the lights went out. When they came back on, they were spotlighting something Oehmig never imagined in all his 37 years in the global tourism industry – a spaceship for tourists.
Virgin Galactic founder Sir Richard Branson and aerospace designer Burt Rutan with the VMS Eve.“It’s not an experience for everyone, but for those who have the adventuresome spirit and the cash, it is definitely a trophy experience,” says Lookout Mountain resident Oehmig.
But at $200,000 per ticket, only an elite few will jump aboard this four-day adventure. Even so, more than 500 people worldwide have plunked down the minimum investment to go where no tourist has gone before. That’s more than the total number of astronauts in the history of humankind. So far a handful of Chattanoogans have expressed genuine interest but not invested any money, says Oehmig. “Just to get on the list is a minimum of $25,000, but the more deposit money you put down the higher on the list you go,” he explains.
The first flight, however, is reserved for adventurist billionaire Richard Branson, the financier and visionary behind Virgin Galactic. While he’d hoped for a launch date early this year, the need for further testing has backed the projected date to 2013. But it will happen, insists Oehmig.
The infrastructure is already in place. In addition to the spaceship, a sinuous building stands in the New Mexico desert called Spaceport America, which will serve as home base (and deluxe hotel). The actual flight is only four hours, yet the experience includes two days of training and preparation, one flight day and an awards ceremony the following evening where every passenger will be awarded official astronaut wings.