Scotland joins the Space Race

10 August 2006
LOSSIEMOUTH.. WE HAVE LIFT OFF
Scots base gets green light for space hols
By Bob Dow

SCOTLAND got the green light to join the space race yesterday - and offer tourists an out-of-this-world experience.

The boss of Sir Richard Branson's space travel firm inspected RAF Lossiemouth in Moray and declared it the perfect launchpad for the venture.

Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic, was delighted by the facilities at the airbase, which he said could easily handle commercial space flights.

He outlined the proposals to air chiefs, who said they couldn't see any problems with flights from Lossiemouth to the stars by 2010.

Whitehorn discussed the plan with top brass as well as well as checking the runway and maintenance and storage facilities.

Billionaire entrepreneur Branson wants to send passengers 87 miles above Earth using a series of spaceships attached to aircraft. Customers who pay around ?110,000 for a ticket will get to experience five minutes of weightlessness during their ride.

Advertisement
Falk AdSolution

Five spaceships and two aircraft are being built over the next four years, with flights possibly starting in 2008 in New Mexico in the States.

The firm are already investing ?120million in a six-passenger plane called Space Ship Two.

Whitehorn has been holding talks over the Lossiemouth site for the last three months and said the north of Scotland was the only part of the UK that met all their conditions.

He added: "Right now, we're headed right on schedule. Things are looking good from our perspective."

A spokesman for the RAF Lossiemouth said: "Everyone seems to be singing from the same hymn sheet, which is brilliant.

"While it is very early days, everyone seems to be really happy with the proposal."

Last month, Virgin revealed 200 bookings had been taken for its space flights

Thats pretty good news for Lossie. This kind of idea with bring much prosperity to the area.