Kids Experience Weightless Flight
Eight-year-old boys dream of being superheroes -- flying high
above the clouds with nothing to limit themselves but their
imaginations. For young adventurer Danner Cronise, Zero Gravity
Corporation (Zero-G) turned this dream into reality, enabling
Danner to fly like Superman and enjoy 10-times more hang-time than
the world's best basketball player -- all while making history as
the youngest person ever to experience a weightless flight.

The folks at Zero-G -- the first and only FAA-approved provider
of commercial weightless flights -- tell ANN Danner's adventure
truly was a family affair, as he was joined by his father Ray, and
older sisters Erin (10) and Alex (12). A NASA engineer for more
than 15 years and a co-founder of Zero-G, Ray Cronise had a unique
and personal reason for wanting to see his children enjoy
weightlessness first hand. "It is awe inspiring to be able to take
your kids on such a memorable experience. Being exposed to these
kinds of adventures kindles curiosity and keeps them dreaming,"
said Ray.
Each of his three children had different reasons for loving
their Zero-G experience. Danner said he loved being tossed like a
ball across the plane cabin and was fascinated to see how droplets
of water hovered in the air before his eyes during Zero gravity. On
being the youngest person ever to experience a weightless flight,
Danner said, "It makes me feel good and very lucky. The flight was
so cool. I was floating and flipping, just like the astronauts in
space." He added, "I showed my friends pictures and they all want
to go now too. Can I do it again next week?"
Erin, an aspiring gymnast, said her favorite part was "being
able to do a back flip without needing someone to spot me like in
class; I felt like the best gymnast in the world! During one of the
first weightless moments, I did a back handspring -- I was so
excited!"
Alex, the eldest of the three, loved every moment and was
especially amused when her coach told her to release a handful of
M&M's into the air so she could watch them float before her and
chase them down like PacMan. When asked if she would do it again,
Alex responded, "Of course I would! It's the most fun thing ever
that I have ever done -- more fun than Disneyworld!"
"The most important part about the Cronise's family adventure is
that it underscores what is at the core of the Zero-G philosophy,"
said Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, CEO and Co-Founder of Zero-G said. "We
break the paradigm of this incredible sensation of floating being
reserved for fairy tales or second-hand experiences and enable
people to really fly and feel and see it first-hand. There is no
comparison for the experience that Zero-G delivers -- it is pure
exhilaration from the moment you arrive, throughout the flight, and
lives on through many talks with others that have never been."

Zero-G offers the only commercial opportunity on Earth for
individuals to experience true "weightlessness" without going to
space. The Zero-G Experience consists of a brief training session
for passengers followed by a 90-minute flight aboard G-Force One,
the company's specially-modified Boeing 727. The flight includes 15
weightless parabolas that last approximately 30 seconds each and
range from low-gravity environments typical of the moon (1/6 G) and
Mars (1/3 G) to complete weightlessness. Zero-G notes it delivers
twice the amount of weightless time achieved in a typical
sub-orbital flight into space.
Weightless flight is an experience that few have tried... but
those who have call it amazing and life-changing. Martha Stewart,
Professor Stephen Hawking, Princess Beatrice of York, Amy Grant,
Billy Bush, Burt Rutan, Miles O'Brien, and spacefarers Buzz Aldrin
and Anousheh Ansari are but a few notable passengers who've flown
with Zero-G.
That's some high-flying company for an eight-year-old...