It is the greatest possible adventure for any person: a flight into space! For the first time in the history of space travel, a normal civilian will have the chance to fly into space and visit the International Space Station ISS. Space tv will choose on a worldwide exclusive basis seven Space Commanders for a flight to the ISS.
Space tv AG, a 100%-affiliate of Brainpool AG, has concluded together with Astrium GmbH, Bremen a contract for a total of seven space flights with Russian Soyuz rockets over the period from 2002 until 2008.
At today's press conference Brainpool's chief executive officer J¿rg Grabosch and Josef Kind, member of the Astrium managing board, gave further details on the space project.
Together with the American and Russian partners, Astrium is jointly responsible for the training of the candidates, transport to and the stay on the ISS. Space tv is in charge of designing the qualifying competitions and the complete marketing of the project.
Space tv will select the participants for the flight into space through a multimedia entertainment concept. The pan-European TV show to start the process of finding the final candidate will start in fall 2001.
Space tv will develop the exclusive space flights and the selection of the candidates under the "Space Commander" logo into a global entertainment theme.
Recruiting
The kick-off for the Space Commander project will be the setting up of Recruiting Camps in major European cities. The visitors will have the chance to put themselves forward as a candidate for the adventure in space over a period of seven days.
Exhibits such as transportable modules of the space station, films, events and concerts on the topic of outer space will round out the event. Out of anything up to 60,000 applicants, 6,000 candidates will have the chance for casting in the subsequent elimination competitions.
For two days all these candidates will be comprehensively tested for their physical fitness, whether male of female, over 23, no taller than 1.85 metres and not over 85 kg. A selection process that the jet pilots of the Bundeswehr also have to pass.
Qualification
Then 600 contestants will take each other on in the hot phase of the qualification. Space tv is planning around 100 TV shows based on these events, in which general knowledge, fitness and the ability to withstand stress are tested.
In the quiz shows the candidates have to demonstrate their good all-round education and thus qualify for the next step towards going into space.
Following that, a comprehensive fitness test awaits the competitors. Their ability to withstand stresses specific to space travel will be tested in the action shows; for example, in the centrifuge, flying weightless in a parabola, in a jet fighter or parachuting.
The highlight of all this is the official russian cosmonaute test of the aerospace authorities at Star City in Moscow. Then comes the big psycho-test. What is required is a high level of social skills.
The candidates will spend 14 days hermetically sealed off in a mock-up of the ISS. The future Space Commanders must also demonstrate that they have strong nerves even under extreme conditions. The viewers determine who will win and go into the final round as the national champion.
The TV viewers will also follow in close-up all the subsequent stages such as the cosmonaute training and the decision as to who will be allowed to fly into space.
The Flight
