Wed, Mar 24, 2004
Flying To 'The Edge Of Space & Back' Aboard A MiG-25
"Flying to the edge of
space was an amazing experience I will never forget," Travelers
Advantage "Edge of Space" Sweepstakes winner Kara Sutton said.
"Both the trip to Russia and flight aboard a MiG-25 fighter jet
were just unbelievable. A Georgia Tech graduate who works in a
hospital Emergency Room here, Sutton entered the sweepstakes as a
hobby and won the Travelers Advantage "Edge of Space" Sweepstakes.
The free Space Adventures trip, which was valued at $18,995,
included travel to Moscow, hotel accommodations and the flight from
the Zhukovsky Air Force Base outside Moscow.
"I remember during the flight when the pilot said, 'We're going
supersonic now,' and the MiG-25 started climbing through the
atmosphere. I took pictures of the fabulous view but noticed that
it was difficult getting my arms to lift upwards. It's like my
camera suddenly weighed eight pounds. We're at Mach 2.4,' said the
pilot. The sky kept getting bluer and bluer. 'We are at peak
altitude,' the pilot noted. It seemed quieter for some reason now.
I knew we would be at this apex for only a minute. I saw the
curvature of the Earth at the horizon, the blackness of space above
me and the meandering Moscow River in the white, snowy earth 80,000
feet below. I never realized how bright Earth is, it's as if it is
lit from within," Sutton said.
"For someone like me, who grew up watching the Space Shuttle
take off while I was in elementary school, this was the trip of a
lifetime," she added. "But I also realize that today, space tourism
is in its infancy. I'd love to have a chance to go fly even further
from Earth in the future when space tourism begins to come of
age."
"Kara was one of more than 50,000 entries we received online"
Travelers Advantage Vice President Julia Ryan said. "Her response
to the trip to 'the edge of space' suggests that space tourism has
a bright future as these trips become more affordable in the years
ahead."
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