Thai company to launch space flights promo in Hong Kong

Find out if you can hitch.

Bangkok-based tourism company Khiri Voyages said the first flights into space will take place late this year or early 2014. Khiri has been appointed exclusive Thailand agents for Space Expedition Corporation (SXC).

SXC will facilitate space adventure travel for Thais who book through Khiri Voyages. After booking, Thai space travelers will undergo training in The Netherlands that includes a flight in a L-39 Albatross jet and the Desdemona simulator, which generates G-forces of up to 3.3G.

The space traveler will ride the XCOR Lynx Mark I or Mark II space jet to 192,000 feet. The jet’s engines are switched off and the jet’s momentum propels it to 338,000 feet (103 km) above the Earth where a state of weightlessness occurs.

At the highest point, the space traveler can float in the spacecraft and see the curvature of the Earth. The Lynx returns to Earth and lands on an airfield. The entire trip will take about one hour and will cost US$135,000.