Branson / Virgin.............Right or wrong ?

[evoman3957]

I know that when it comes to Cars etc. that many of the modern day innovations, have come from the track and the cutting edge of Motor Racing. However, although the same has applied to Space travel and exploration; N.A.S.A. has pioneered this form of scientific advancement and it's taken the State backing of the richest Country in the World to do it...............Russia and others playing their part obviously. Richard Branson's current exploits I.M.O. are for his own business advancement, in order to offer a ride in Space to very rich clients. Keeping in mind, that the final immediate goal; is to only be able to remain within the Earths orbit, to give wealthy People the "Ride of a lifetime"...............is the current level of Deaths, associated with this programme, acceptable / tolerable ?.

[cee-dee]

Every new "thing" is risky. People weigh up the risk before they embark upon whatever that new thing might be.

Some things are more risky than others, the most risky verge on being foolhardy.

However, if you want to indulge in foolhardy ventures, fine, carry on, I'll advise you not to but I'll wish you luck for a successful outcome but don't expect me to feel sorry for you if you come unstuck.

[upthecreekyetagain]

I'd say, "of course it's worth doing"

. . . and Richard Branson is to be applauded for financing this venture.

Far more people died in developing air travel than have done so in "space travel" and the same argument could, (and was), used that air travel was only being developed to offer a ride to the rich.  Just 100 years later flying is well within the reach of many and is one of the safest forms of travel.

[bankhaunter]

Plenty of people died whilst simply wanting to see if man could fly and later just to win a prize as well as being involved in potential business ventures.

I don't see the test flights of Virgin Galactic being any different apart from possibly being less risky, you don't have to be very high to die.

[joamur_gosof]

Mr Branson is awesome ,I wish him success on this venture and any other venture he wishes to pursue .

[electric*mayhem*band]

In Branson's case, 'more money than sense' springs to mind. But of course if and when this pipe dream of his ever comes to fruition, there will be plenty of takers, like him, with 'more money than sense'. He seems completely unphased by the fact that one person has died, and another one has been seriously injured in this expedition. The massaging of egos must be a powerful magnet.

Why anyone would want to ponce around in space with no discernible destination other than to circumnavigate the globe, is completely beyond me anyway.

[fallen-archie]

Foolish, Foolhardy or pushing the boundaries? Britain has a great tradition when it comes to firsts and despite being outgunned by many other nations we still punch above our weight. The subject of travel is an arena where we have always been up there with the best yet the journey is littered with failures. If it were not for the bravery of test pilots nothing would have been achieved and One such person is Captain Eric Melrose "Winkle" Brown, RN, CBE, DSC, AFC, Hon FRAeS (born 21 January 1919) a British former Royal Navy officer and test pilot who holds the record for the number of different aircraft flown. He was one of the only pilots to succeed in flying an early mescherschmit jet which killed most who dared try to fly it. If you like a good read there is a book and he has a wiki page dedicated to him. Great stuff but Jesus he was one lucky guy.

[bankhaunter]

Why anyone would want to ponce around in space with no discernible destination other than to circumnavigate the globe, is completely beyond me anyway.

Just to have done it perhaps, it would be a fantastic experience and there are no lack of takers.

You might as well ask why anyone would want to do extreme ironing yet plenty do.

[evoman3957]

ALL Ironing's pretty extreme as far as I'm concerned.

[bankhaunter]

Do you indulge in this sort of thing

[evoman3957]

If I did.....................I'd be driving.

[electric*mayhem*band]

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@bankhaunter wrote:

Why anyone would want to ponce around in space with no discernible destination other than to circumnavigate the globe, is completely beyond me anyway.

Just to have done it perhaps, it would be a fantastic experience and there are no lack of takers.

You might as well ask why anyone would want to do extreme ironing yet plenty do.

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Yes, I'm certain there are no shortage of would be Dan Dares, as I've already said. Personally I'd much rather take a Helicopter flight over the Lake District, ending with an excursion around Morecambe Bay. At about £74 a throw, a damned sight cheaper than Branson's pleasure trips I'm sure, and certainly more to see en route.

Extreme ironing ? Now that's a new one on me. Is that the latest adrenaline extreme sport in your part of the world, BH ? I've got a basket full of stuff that needs pressing, if you know of anyone requiring a bit of training. No charge levied.

[upthecreekyetagain]

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@electric*mayhem*band wrote:

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@bankhaunter wrote:

Why anyone would want to ponce around in space with no discernible destination other than to circumnavigate the globe, is completely beyond me anyway.

Just to have done it perhaps, it would be a fantastic experience and there are no lack of takers.

You might as well ask why anyone would want to do extreme ironing yet plenty do.

---

Yes, I'm certain there are no shortage of would be Dan Dares, as I've already said. Personally I'd much rather take a Helicopter flight over the Lake District, ending with an excursion around Morecambe Bay. At about £74 a throw, a damned sight cheaper than Branson's pleasure trips I'm sure, and certainly more to see en route.

Extreme ironing ? Now that's a new one on me. Is that the latest adrenaline extreme sport in your part of the world, BH ? I've got a basket full of stuff that needs pressing, if you know of anyone requiring a bit of training. No charge levied.

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And how many accidents were there in the devlopment of the helicopter by men of vision that now allows you to take such a trip?

If Branson's dream of commercial space travel comes to fruition it opens up the possibility of long distance travel in a fraction of the time it takes today.

[bankhaunter]

If Branson's dream of commercial space travel comes to fruition it opens up the possibility of long distance travel in a fraction of the time it takes today.

Could we finally see the equivalent of HOTOL2?  They have been working on it for twenty years mostly on the engine.

Three reasons for people taking some risk when testing aircraft.  Just to see if they can fly is a particular way, commercial possibilities and military use.

[al**bear]

I can't be the only person who thinks these flights 'won't take you into space' , they will take you up to skim the top of the atmosphere and I don't think thats the same.

[esswad]

They will reach space.  The usual definition of the frontier of space is 100km above sea level, aka "The Karman Line", and SpaceShipTwo is designed to go above that.  As far as the main topic of this thread goes, you own your own life and it's up to each individual to decide for themselves which risks are worth taking.  The pilots of SS2 could just as easily have been airline pilots but they decided to be test pilots instead.  The passengers who will eventually fly with Virgin Galactic and other companies have decided that it's worth the risk and financial outlay for the experience of going into space, even if only for a few minutes.  That's for them to decide and no-one else.  Personally, if I could afford a ticket I'd sign up tomorrow.  It would be worth the risk to fulfil a lifelong dream.

[evoman3957]

Just something I threw out there for debate really, I understand pushing the boundaries; when it is for the advancement of mankind, but not sure of how I feel when it is for pure enjoyment / thrill seeking. Air travel / Flying ,as a whole, has been for the advancement of mankind........delivering Medicines / Aid / Mail and many other things benefiting from it. N.A.S.A. has already pushed to boundaries of Space Travel way beyond anything Branson is trying to achieve, or can hope to achieve and many developments from that have worked their way into our everyday lives. But Hey ! People are still killing themselves trying to climb Everest, or Base jumping, or doing many other "Death Wish" types of things...........as a  Petrol Head; whose driven Cars at speeds approaching 200 MPH ( not mine, it's not quite THAT fast  ), I guess I'm one of them ( to an extent ). It's just that a lot of these things are spontaneous, or at least only for the benefit of those who indulge. Branson's Programme is just that, a business venture; that will ultimately only benefit those thrill seekers / select few , that can afford to pay.........there's just a difference there somewhere for me.

[bankhaunter]

It was also intended to be used as a vehicle to put up satellites at a significantly cheaper cost.

[evoman3957]

Fair enough........they're certainly of benefit.

[pillarboxred]

There have been reports that warnings were ignored. Employees left in protest. This is very serious and is quite different from whether staff are "adrenalin junkies" or "risk averse". If investigators find that important matters were brushed aside then there could be serious consequences for Mr Branson if the issues raised were the cause of the crash.

I think that Branson could have held back a day, if not a week, or a month, before resorting to Space boosterism.