News Sir Richard Branson gains licence for commercial spaceflights.

[Notebook]

Sir Richard Branson gains licence for commercial spaceflights

The US Federal Aviation Administration says Sir Richard's rocket plane can carry paying customers.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[GLS]

Now he needs to get his rocket plane into space....

https://twitter.com/x/status/1099001569691889664

 

[N_Molson]

89.9 km is not bad. Only 10.1 km to go ! FAI says the limit is 100 km.

Jebediah Kerman : "Add moar boosters."

 

[GLS]

Targeting a (not) spaceflight 9 days before the competitor's flight:

 

[Owenmck]

Does anyone know the maximum speed that the craft reaches?

 

[steph]

Wouldn't flying with less people help it break the Karman line, assuming that he wanted to? Anyways, first flight is with employees. A bit odd, although it they probably volunteered

 

[GLS]

Wouldn't flying with less people help it break the Karman line, assuming that he wanted to? Anyways, first flight is with employees. A bit odd, although it they probably volunteered

The test flights probably carried ballast to simulate passengers, so performance should be similar.
As far as "how much mass would you have to trim to get an extra 10-15Km?", this can be estimated in Orbiter.

 

[GLS]

Tomorrow

https://twitter.com/x/status/1413609257090502656

 

[GLS]

Shots fired ?

https://twitter.com/x/status/1413521627116032001

 

[richfororbit]

History will be made, first group of people who aren't Astronauts from an agency, going on a flight.

 

[Pioneer]

Shots fired ?

https://twitter.com/x/status/1413521627116032001

SpaceX at this point has flown WAYYYYY past either of them. If I may, one needs a little blue pill to get it up, and the other is still a virgin!

 

[Owenmck]

I wonder what the laws on selling alcohol in space are. Wonder who will be the first to get a licence for selling alcohol in space

 

[GLS]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1414179512749752323

 

[Arvil]

I wonder what the laws on selling alcohol in space are. Wonder who will be the first to get a licence for selling alcohol in space

Do cruise ships require licensing from somewhere for alcohol in international waters? I don't know. Seems it's regulated by maritime law rather than a country. Since there is no space law in this regard yet, maybe it'll be easier to just make that part of an 'all inclusive' package, then there would not be any issue with alcohol sales. Then what about casinos?

 

[Urwumpe]

I wonder what the laws on selling alcohol in space are. Wonder who will be the first to get a licence for selling alcohol in space

Alcohol in space is no problem as long as the last freighter to the ISS before christmas is not by NASA...

 

[GLS]

Here we go

 

[Urwumpe]

Stephen Colbert?

 

[GLS]

Stephen Colbert?

See post 8 above.

 

[Urwumpe]

See post 8 above.

OK, I should read more posts. ?

 

[GLS]

We just learned that 2 minutes of shaking on a rocket as it launches is "uncomfortable"... I call that "the first fun part".