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Soyuz For Sale

Aired June 18, 2003 - 15:44   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Imagine, if you will, a game show in the distant future. Think of it as "The Price is Right" meeting "The Jetsons."
So, what would you pay for a trip to the international space station? You and a guest will spend four weeks going through physical examination. If you pass, you'll spend your next few months training with the Russian space agency. Then it's off to space onboard a Soyuz rocket, where in these very tight quarters, you'll spend the next few days weightless on your way to a seven-day stay at the international space station. Taxes, title, transfer all included.

But since it's not a prize on "The Price is Right," you will have to cough up a little bit of dough, Johnny. But come on down anyway, because Eric Anderson, the president of Space Adventures and Dennis Tito, the first space tourist, now join us from New York on the heels of an announcement that is a big step in the world of commercializing space.

And we'll begin with Eric, the CEO of Space Adventures. Just tell us what you're putting up for sale there, Eric?

ERIC ANDERSON, SPACE ADVENTURES: Well, Miles, we've signed a contract with the Russian space agency to provide two seats on a Soyuz TMA spacecraft in the beginning of 2005. So it's one of life's great experiences, if not the greatest, as Dennis will tell you, and it's now available again. We have these seats for sale and we were looking for candidates to fly.

O'BRIEN: All right. So two seats and we're talking that same figure, which is out there, give or take $20 million a seat. Everything's, of course, negotiable, right?

ANDERSON: It is, Miles. But remember, its it's very expensive to fly one of these rockets. It only gets used once and, you know, I think it's more important to focus on the value of what the experience is, which is priceless, in my mind.

O'BRIEN: All right. Dennis Tito who is here strictly as a booster, if you'll excuse the expression, not any specific link to Space Adventure.

It's been two years since you flew. Only one tourist has followed you into space, Mark Shuttleworth (ph), who was also there for the announcement. Do you wish things would be moving a little more quickly and also how big a deal is today's announcement? DENNIS TITO, SPACE TOURIST: Well, I think it's a big deal because, as a result of the Columbia tragedy, tourist flights were canceled and would not resume until after the shuttle became operational again, and we have no idea how long that will take.

But now with these additional seats, we can see -- we'll be able to see a resumption of space tourism. That's, I think, a very positive step.

O'BRIEN: Was it worth every penny?

TITO: Absolutely. It was a life-changing experience. I'm still getting pennies back every day by thinking about it and hopefully will think about every day for the rest of my life.

O'BRIEN: Eric, one of the issues which has to -- you have to contend with here in the wake of Columbia is come concerns about taxing the resources of the space station by allowing a commercial venture to visit. Is that a wise idea when they're worried about conserving things like water up there?

ANDERSON: Well, in actual fact, the seats in the mission that we're planning will be self sufficient entirely.

And beyond that, one of the reasons why the Russian space agency and the international partners support space tourism is because financially it helps the program. I mean, the more rockets that fly, the more efficient they are, the less they cost and those rockets are extremely important to the space station.

So this actually helps quite a bit, and it's great to get things back on track here.

O'BRIEN: This gives new meaning to the terms niche market, when you're talking about $20 million, give or take a ticket. How big a market do you think it is, Eric?

ANDERSON: Well, we certainly have, you know, a dozen or so people who have come to us over the last year-and-a-half from all over the world in various stages now of, you know, medical qualifications and deciding when they could take the time off to train and go.

There are definitely people out there. I mean, you know, a good percentage of the population, whether they're, you know, extremely rich or not, really like space. And so we just want to draw those people out and get them to participate in space exploration themselves.

O'BRIEN: Dennis, Eric's point is well take, but having said all of that, it hasn't exactly been a stampede into space since you flew.

TITO: Well, it's a lot of money and, you know, it's still -- there's still a certain amount of risk to it.

But, also, the word has to get out. And I think we're going to see a lot more orbital tourists. But I think there's also the suborbital side, which will be a lot less costly.

O'BRIEN: There's a lot of that going on right now.

We got an e-mail, as a matter of fact, from Rob in Ottawa, which kind of sends down that road. I want you guys to both comment on this.

Actually, there we go. There's Rob's.

"Do you think that big business will venture into newer ideas for space travel like space planes, scramjets," which is a fancy engine that doesn't need oxygen, "Meglev or any other generations of shuttles design?

In other words, will the commercial space entity spur that growth? Dennis, you first.

TITO: Well, I think you will see small entrepreneurial efforts that, you know, wouldn't be termed as large corporations. But as I would expect, that over time, these efforts will become successful and we may look back and see a whole new industry and large companies making a lot of money, sending tens of thousands of people to space eventually.

O'BRIEN: Now, Eric, the suborbital ideas -- and there's quite a few of them out there. Burt Routan (ph) out of Mojave (ph) is one leading that's leading the way here. But there are others out there.

We're talking about a ticket there perhaps on the order of $50,000 for maybe about five, six, seven minutes of weightlessness. Is that a viable market, do you think?

ANDERSON: Oh, absolutely.

You know, the suborbital program is something which we've, you know, championed for the last few years and developing the vehicles over the next two years that are going to be able to take people there. And it's those kind of vehicles that will lead to, you know, much more economical systems and safer systems it's all about running people through the program.

The market is clearly there and the way -- you know, the amount of time it takes to build those new vehicles or those new technologies and to have private space stations and things like that is all dependent upon how many people step forward now as investors and customers to support it.

O'BRIEN: All right. One final e-mail I want to get in here. This is from Daniel. This is a good one.

"What are your views on space lotteries? Many people competing to get a chance to ride on a space flight?"

Dennis, you like that idea?

TITO: Well, yes and no. A lottery will bring a lot of people in, but we never know who's going to win that lottery and whether that person is qualified or not. I guess they could always sell their seat to someone else, but I think that space should be reserved for people that really are willing to devote a lot of their effort in training and are dedicated to that kind of flight.

O'BRIEN: All right. About out of time. Eric, yea or nay on lotteries?

ANDERSON: Absolutely. It's a way of sharing space with all the other people out there who couldn't afford the price themselves.

O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, gentlemen. Eric Anderson, Dennis Tito, I'm going to start my own lottery right now. As a matter of fact, it just started. You can start buying tickets to send Miles to space. I'll get you a Web site soon.

In the meantime, you can check out Eric's Web site at spaceadventures.com to learn more about you can part with $20 million per seat -- there it is -- $20 million per seat, give or take. You can go with your wife, your parents, or send two people you don't like at all, for that matter, if you want to.

Gentlemen, thank you very much. That mission should fly early 2005, if all goes well. Eric Anderson, Dennis Tito.

TITO: Thank you.

ANDERSON: Thanks, Miles.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired June 18, 2003 - 15:44   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Imagine, if you will, a game show in the distant future. Think of it as "The Price is Right" meeting "The Jetsons."
So, what would you pay for a trip to the international space station? You and a guest will spend four weeks going through physical examination. If you pass, you'll spend your next few months training with the Russian space agency. Then it's off to space onboard a Soyuz rocket, where in these very tight quarters, you'll spend the next few days weightless on your way to a seven-day stay at the international space station. Taxes, title, transfer all included.

But since it's not a prize on "The Price is Right," you will have to cough up a little bit of dough, Johnny. But come on down anyway, because Eric Anderson, the president of Space Adventures and Dennis Tito, the first space tourist, now join us from New York on the heels of an announcement that is a big step in the world of commercializing space.

And we'll begin with Eric, the CEO of Space Adventures. Just tell us what you're putting up for sale there, Eric?

ERIC ANDERSON, SPACE ADVENTURES: Well, Miles, we've signed a contract with the Russian space agency to provide two seats on a Soyuz TMA spacecraft in the beginning of 2005. So it's one of life's great experiences, if not the greatest, as Dennis will tell you, and it's now available again. We have these seats for sale and we were looking for candidates to fly.

O'BRIEN: All right. So two seats and we're talking that same figure, which is out there, give or take $20 million a seat. Everything's, of course, negotiable, right?

ANDERSON: It is, Miles. But remember, its it's very expensive to fly one of these rockets. It only gets used once and, you know, I think it's more important to focus on the value of what the experience is, which is priceless, in my mind.

O'BRIEN: All right. Dennis Tito who is here strictly as a booster, if you'll excuse the expression, not any specific link to Space Adventure.

It's been two years since you flew. Only one tourist has followed you into space, Mark Shuttleworth (ph), who was also there for the announcement. Do you wish things would be moving a little more quickly and also how big a deal is today's announcement? DENNIS TITO, SPACE TOURIST: Well, I think it's a big deal because, as a result of the Columbia tragedy, tourist flights were canceled and would not resume until after the shuttle became operational again, and we have no idea how long that will take.

But now with these additional seats, we can see -- we'll be able to see a resumption of space tourism. That's, I think, a very positive step.

O'BRIEN: Was it worth every penny?

TITO: Absolutely. It was a life-changing experience. I'm still getting pennies back every day by thinking about it and hopefully will think about every day for the rest of my life.

O'BRIEN: Eric, one of the issues which has to -- you have to contend with here in the wake of Columbia is come concerns about taxing the resources of the space station by allowing a commercial venture to visit. Is that a wise idea when they're worried about conserving things like water up there?

ANDERSON: Well, in actual fact, the seats in the mission that we're planning will be self sufficient entirely.

And beyond that, one of the reasons why the Russian space agency and the international partners support space tourism is because financially it helps the program. I mean, the more rockets that fly, the more efficient they are, the less they cost and those rockets are extremely important to the space station.

So this actually helps quite a bit, and it's great to get things back on track here.

O'BRIEN: This gives new meaning to the terms niche market, when you're talking about $20 million, give or take a ticket. How big a market do you think it is, Eric?

ANDERSON: Well, we certainly have, you know, a dozen or so people who have come to us over the last year-and-a-half from all over the world in various stages now of, you know, medical qualifications and deciding when they could take the time off to train and go.

There are definitely people out there. I mean, you know, a good percentage of the population, whether they're, you know, extremely rich or not, really like space. And so we just want to draw those people out and get them to participate in space exploration themselves.

O'BRIEN: Dennis, Eric's point is well take, but having said all of that, it hasn't exactly been a stampede into space since you flew.

TITO: Well, it's a lot of money and, you know, it's still -- there's still a certain amount of risk to it.

But, also, the word has to get out. And I think we're going to see a lot more orbital tourists. But I think there's also the suborbital side, which will be a lot less costly.

O'BRIEN: There's a lot of that going on right now.

We got an e-mail, as a matter of fact, from Rob in Ottawa, which kind of sends down that road. I want you guys to both comment on this.

Actually, there we go. There's Rob's.

"Do you think that big business will venture into newer ideas for space travel like space planes, scramjets," which is a fancy engine that doesn't need oxygen, "Meglev or any other generations of shuttles design?

In other words, will the commercial space entity spur that growth? Dennis, you first.

TITO: Well, I think you will see small entrepreneurial efforts that, you know, wouldn't be termed as large corporations. But as I would expect, that over time, these efforts will become successful and we may look back and see a whole new industry and large companies making a lot of money, sending tens of thousands of people to space eventually.

O'BRIEN: Now, Eric, the suborbital ideas -- and there's quite a few of them out there. Burt Routan (ph) out of Mojave (ph) is one leading that's leading the way here. But there are others out there.

We're talking about a ticket there perhaps on the order of $50,000 for maybe about five, six, seven minutes of weightlessness. Is that a viable market, do you think?

ANDERSON: Oh, absolutely.

You know, the suborbital program is something which we've, you know, championed for the last few years and developing the vehicles over the next two years that are going to be able to take people there. And it's those kind of vehicles that will lead to, you know, much more economical systems and safer systems it's all about running people through the program.

The market is clearly there and the way -- you know, the amount of time it takes to build those new vehicles or those new technologies and to have private space stations and things like that is all dependent upon how many people step forward now as investors and customers to support it.

O'BRIEN: All right. One final e-mail I want to get in here. This is from Daniel. This is a good one.

"What are your views on space lotteries? Many people competing to get a chance to ride on a space flight?"

Dennis, you like that idea?

TITO: Well, yes and no. A lottery will bring a lot of people in, but we never know who's going to win that lottery and whether that person is qualified or not. I guess they could always sell their seat to someone else, but I think that space should be reserved for people that really are willing to devote a lot of their effort in training and are dedicated to that kind of flight.

O'BRIEN: All right. About out of time. Eric, yea or nay on lotteries?

ANDERSON: Absolutely. It's a way of sharing space with all the other people out there who couldn't afford the price themselves.

O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, gentlemen. Eric Anderson, Dennis Tito, I'm going to start my own lottery right now. As a matter of fact, it just started. You can start buying tickets to send Miles to space. I'll get you a Web site soon.

In the meantime, you can check out Eric's Web site at spaceadventures.com to learn more about you can part with $20 million per seat -- there it is -- $20 million per seat, give or take. You can go with your wife, your parents, or send two people you don't like at all, for that matter, if you want to.

Gentlemen, thank you very much. That mission should fly early 2005, if all goes well. Eric Anderson, Dennis Tito.

TITO: Thank you.

ANDERSON: Thanks, Miles.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com