More than 300 wealthy Chinese buy space flight tickets: report
Tickets offering purchasers a five-minute trip in space have been snapped up by wealthy enthusiasts in China, official report says
More than 300 Chinese space enthusiasts have booked tickets costing nearly US$100,000 for a five-minute trip to outer space, official media reported on Friday.
The 305 buyers snapped up tickets for a trip with Dutch firm Space Expedition Corp (SXC) when they went on sale on Taobao, an online retail website, the state-run reported.
The trips will take place in a two-man craft that remains in space for five to six minutes, giving the tourist a rarely seen view and the experience of weightlessness, the report said.
The tickets were sold for 599,999 yuan (HK$756,152) it said, adding that four entrepreneurs from the southwestern city of Chengdu and two from the commercial hub Shanghai were among those who signed up.
The Taobao page selling the tickets was only available on June 12th, a spokesman for the website told reporters. A screenshot showed that transactions had been made.
No date for the trip was given. Despite a flurry of interest in space tourism in recent years, no private firms have yet been able to launch regular trips.
