IA in the NEWS
| Starfighters USA | Starfighters
Photo Gallery | More IA Press
For Immediate Release
Contact: Jane Reifert
Sarasota, FL
800-644-7382 / 941-346-2603
Civilians Train for Space in Plane
Used to Train Generations of Astronauts
Sarasota, FL- February 12, 2010 -- Two Florida residents have
become the first to complete civilian
space flight training in the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, the
same supersonic jet used to prepare generations of astronauts
for space travel. Terence Witt and his wife Virginia Dickens of
Indialantic spent five days training with Starfighters Aerospace
at Florida's John F Kennedy Space Center.
Starfighters
Aerospace is currently the only company approved by both the FAA
and NASA to offer civilian suborbital space flight training out
of Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility. They maintain a fleet of
privately-owned F-104 Starfighters approved for use both in civilian
flight training and government and private scientific testing.
After successfully passing a mandatory medical evaluation, Witt
and Dickens dressed in flight suits and were briefed in the principles
of atmospheric pressure and high-altitude flight. Their new knowledge
was then put to a test during a simulated climb to altitude within
a hypobaric pressure chamber. Finally, following an extensive
flight safety briefing which included F-104 ejection seat training,
first Witt and then Dickens, climbed into the rear cockpit of
a two-seat F-104 Starfighter and blasted out over the Atlantic,
taking off from the very same runway used by NASA's Space Shuttle.
Their high-speed F-14 Starfighter flights were carefully designed
to simulate both the high-gravitational forces and weightlessness
passengers aboard future suborbital space flights will experience.
Several companies are currently developing rocket-powered space
craft designed to take adventurers 200,000 feet or higher.
Witt and Dickens purchased their training package from Sarasota-based
Incredible Adventures, an international adventure company with
a long-history of delivering air and space experiences. Incredible
Adventures is best known for offering MiG fighter jet flights
and space adventures in Russia and has an exclusive right to market
the Starfighters Aerospace F-104 program.
Incredible Adventures offers two different Starfighter Space
Training Adventures. Pricing starts at $30,500 and training is
available year round. For more information, contact Incredible
Adventures at 800-644-7382.
# # #
| Starfighters USA | Starfighters
Photo Gallery | More IA Press
|