By Lior Kodner
60-year-old Dennis Tito had a familiar dream as a child: to become a cosmonaut
and fly into space. Next month he will probably fulfill it, when he joins
as a guest on a Russian space agency flight. The pleasure will cost him, it is reported,
20 million dollars. Tito, a shrewd businessman, already has ideas how
get back part of the amount
Dennis Tito The Americans object
Denis Tito is training for the flight. He is convinced that he can even turn off
A fire in the space station on its own. Photos: AP
Denis Tito admits that he does not have the necessary skills to be a professional astronaut.
But apparently this significant fact will not prevent the American millionaire
The 60-year-old will next month be the first tourist in human history to leave
to explore space. He succeeded in getting the unique plane ticket, which he had wanted since his youth
Tito to purchase from the Russian space agency in exchange for a huge sum of money - according to
Several publications This pleasure cost him twenty million dollars.
For months, Tito lived in Moscow, to closely manage the cargo
and his giving with the Russians. He hired himself an assistant, a resident of the Russian capital,
To help him communicate with the people of the Russian space agency, and also repel the
The incessant requests to interview him. The businessman hopes for these references
The shrewd one to take advantage of to make a fortune:
A few weeks ago he agreed to give an exclusive interview to the weekly "Newsweek"
In exchange for a considerable sum of money, the size of which the parties refuse to disclose
the exact one. After signing the flight agreement with the Russians, Tito participated
in a training program designed to train him to fly and stay in space. "we
We need to teach him the alphabet of staying outside the earth",
Explains the spokesman of the Russian space agency, Sergey Gorbunov. "Everyone who flies
A space needs to know how to eat so that the food and drink don't overwhelm you
The spaceship, how to walk where there is no gravity, and eventually
Also how to go to the bathroom in space. All this must be taught to him beforehand
The flight &#;8211 We call it a course in space survival".
At the end of last week, Tito said that he feels XNUMX percent ready for
the flight, and boasted that today he is able to wear a spacesuit within 25
seconds only. "Even if there is a fire on the International Space Station and all
The astronauts will be neutralized, I will know exactly what to do - how to locate
the place of the fire, stop its spread and eventually put it out
her".
Seven days in space
Tito, a resident of Southern California, the son of Italian immigrants, began
interested in the field of space even when he was 17 years old when he was about to graduate from high school,
More than four decades ago, the Soviet Union launched the first satellite
into space, "Sputnik;"1 on April 12, 1961, he followed closely, like the rest
The world, after the launch of the first man into space - the Russian cosmonaut Yuri
Gagarin.
Tito began his professional career as an aeronautical engineer
in a company related to the American space agency NASA. But very quickly he is
He was disappointed with the position, when he realized that his contribution would be limited to this profession
in clerical work on Earth. "At that time there was a certain image
Very much like astronauts," said Tito last month in an interview he gave
From Moscow to the "Washington Post". "These were selected pilots who fought
in Korea, and shot down at least a few Russian MiGs. I didn't see any way
I could belong to this exclusive club."
After leaving aeronautics, Tito joined the business world. He opened
An independent fund for capital investments and made his first million before his maturity
40. The company he owns, Wilshir Co., is today considered one of the foundations
The largest investments in the United States, which has about 500 billion dollars.
Tito's fortune is estimated at 200 million dollars.
But despite the business success, Tito refused to abandon his love for space.
In the last decade, he conducted long and exhausting negotiations with the space agency
the Russian Close to the dissolution of the Soviet Union, he turned to the authorities
In Moscow with a generous offer - millions of dollars in exchange for one plane ticket
desecrate. "Americans don't need this money, so if I came to NASA
and offers them 20 million dollars, for them it's a drop in the ocean, and they undoubtedly are
would refuse. But for the Russians it's a lot of money that can be used by you
Their space program", Tito explained his step.
Only about a month and a half ago, the agreement between him and the Russian government was finally signed. According to
This agreement, the details of which were supposed to remain confidential but were nevertheless leaked
For the media, Tito was supposed to stay in space for seven days and even visit the station
Russian space Mir. But after the Russians decided that the holding of a station
The outdated space is no longer financially viable, and after last week
They even crashed her in a controlled manner into the waters of the Pacific Ocean, she remained
The Russian space agency is in trouble.
On the one hand, the agreement with the American millionaire has already been signed, but on the other hand not
Russia has another space station left to launch to. But in Russia of
Today money can buy everything and the Russians decided not to cancel the contract
who signed with him and instead of Mir, they will send him to the International Space Station.
On April 30, then, Tito will sit in the rightmost seat in the spaceship
The Russian Soyuz, which will take him along with two Russian cosmonauts
Professionals out of the atmosphere, 400 kilometers above me
Earth.
A spaceship that is a taxi
Moscow has no difficulty explaining why it was decided to sign the contract with
Tito. The spokesman for the Russian space agency, Sergey Gorbunov, reasons it this way
In an interview with "Haaretz": "We have such a term - taxi spaceship - spaceship
that flew into space to change crew. We ship from Moscow to space crew
of cosmonauts, to replace their colleagues returning to the sphere
Country. We need to bring new equipment to the International Space Station
In such a place that broke down, and also food and other items. Just for that
Soyuz will be launched into space at the end of next month. There is room for three in this spaceship
Humans - and we only need to send two cosmonauts into space. this
Says we have a spot left. We have offered our partners in the United States,
In Japan and Europe send their staff member based on available space, but
They didn't want to."
So how exactly does an American millionaire fit into this story?
"Mr. Tito has wanted to fly into space since he was a child, and he has a lot of money.
And in addition to all this, he also dabbled a bit in space. He turned to us, we talked
With him a little and we decided we could fly him. These days he passes
training and then he will fly as a third crew member in our spaceship."
From your words it can be understood that for 20 million dollars you can buy today
All in Russia?
"Who said he paid us 20 million? I am by no means ready
disclose the exact amount. We signed a confidential contract with Tito, and I at all
I don't know where this amount came from. I'm just ready to confirm that we received from him
A lot of money.
"We must remember that, first of all, this is a normal flight into space, which is expensive for us
A lot of money. Obviously we demanded that he pay, to cover the costs
the trip The money we get from it we will invest in the Russian part of the space station
the international. I have no problem admitting that we are short on cash,
And transactions of this type allow us to continue to exist."
safe flight
In recent years there has been a significant change in the nature of space flights and the Russians,
As well as the United States, they launched not only astronauts in their spaceships.
Politicians, scientists, a teacher and even a Japanese journalist have joined in the past
for extraterrestrial research expeditions, but no one has yet paid out of pocket
For this kind of adventure.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union brought to an end not only the Cold War but
Also the space race between the two great powers, and Russia stopped at once
One is the infusion of billions into its space agency. the financing problems
created as a result have caused quite a lot of embarrassing situations in recent years.
Malfunctions at the Mir space station happened almost every week, and the cosmonaut Sergey
Avdaev was even forced to stay aboard Mir six months later
As planned, only because Moscow was unable to raise the necessary money to
return him to his homeland.
Even the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, recently expressed his displeasure
of the dismal state of the space program in his country, and even emphasized that its weakness is threatening
For the peace of the nation. "For us, space is not only a matter of luxury, but
It also means the latest technology, which is the basis of the economy
competitive and for Russia's security", announced Putin at the council meeting
for security matters. But in the meantime, even these things did not improve the flow
The cash of the "city of stars", that is the name of the area where my offices are located
The Russian Space Agency and its test sites.
To continue to exist, the Russian space agency had to find sources
Additional income. So, for example, a few years ago the cosmonauts participated
Destroyed in an advertisement for the Pepsi Cola company, which was shot in space. to the Israeli public
They prepared a similar advertisement - for Tnuva milk. more than half
The budget of the Russian space agency, only 114 million dollars a year
2000 comes in recent years from various economic transactions. budget
NASA, by comparison, is more than a hundred times bigger - 12.6 billion dollars.
The money the Russians will receive from Tito will increase the annual budget of a program
Their space is more than 17%. In such a situation, Moscow cannot give up
The amount that the American millionaire is willing to pay for the pleasure.
It is not dangerous to send an inexperienced person into space, especially not a 60-year-old man
Gorbunov: "Flying into space is no more dangerous than driving in his son's car
York I believe that today it is much more dangerous to go out and walk around
In one of the streets in Israel, for example. I don't think he's too old. More
Before we signed the contract, we conducted a series of comprehensive tests for him, and the doctors
Ours determined that his health condition allows him to fly into space. And besides, me
Must say honestly, he is the one responsible for his own health. On
We take responsibility for our cosmonauts - they have insurance and everything,
But we agreed with Tito that we are unable to provide him with such insurance, and he is that
who was exclusively responsible for his health condition".
Gorbunov also takes this opportunity to take pride in the safety of the flights it operates
Russia. "Our space flight is 98.8 percent safe, while countries
The Alliance lags behind us by a little more than ten percent, which is a significant difference
is very".
But in recent days, insurmountable obstacles have appeared in the path of the unique tourist
expected NASA is currently working on the ability of the Russian program to launch the
Tito to the International Space Station and demands that Russia cancel the flight
planned, or at least postpone it. "April is a very tense month
For the International Space Station, which is still under construction,
For their completion, a few more months are needed," said a senior NASA official.
"The presence of an unprofessional person who does not know the technological means
the complicated ones at the station, who is unable to help solve problems at the mother station
And when they wake up, not least the presence of a person who needs to be supervised at all
Time will greatly complicate life on the space station," said the official announcement
published by the agency.
The United States' position was joined last week by Canada, Japan and several others
from the European countries partnering in the operation of the international station. in a message
A published joint statement stated that "in principle we support commercialization
the space station, but it is necessary to decide on criteria that will determine these proposals
Economic ones should be accepted, and those should be refused." In any case, NASA says,
There is less than a month left until the planned date for Tito's launch, and in the period of time
This one cannot be prepared in a way worthy of a space flight.
Protest strike in Houston
The director of the Israeli Space Agency, Avi Har-Evan, says that the Americans considered
Not even allowing Tito to return to his homeland to continue the training program
His, which is now held at the Johnson Space Center in Boston, United States
United States. This training was intended for Tito and his fellow cosmonauts
The Russians familiarize themselves with the equipment stationed in the American part of the space station.
On Tuesday last week, the United States stopped Tito's training,
And in response, the Russian cosmonauts who are supposed to fly with him into space opened up
on a protest strike. Expedition commander Talgat Musayev, flight engineer Yuri
Baturin and two other cosmonauts who are supposed to serve as backup, announced
To the Americans: "Without Tito we are not ready to train". A day later
The confrontation intensified: Russia announced that it refuses to subordinate itself
to Washington's instructions, and stated that Tito would be launched into space even if he did not pass the
The training required in the United States.
"Tito is ready to fly, he is wise and smart, and knows the technology involved
Space users, "from a professional point of view there is no problem launching it into space",
Pyotr Klimok, head of the Russian Space Agency's training team, announced.
"I think that NASA's opposition to his launch is purely due to reasons
politics", announced another senior Russian, Yuri Simionov. "They just don't
They want an American citizen to fly in a Russian spacecraft and also visit the Russian part
of the International Space Station. We will not surrender, and Tito will go into space
As planned on April 30."
The spokeswoman for NASA, Debra Ra, sounded a little softened a week ago when she announced that
"The United States will open talks with Russia to settle the matter."
NASA also announced that in a short time senior officials will meet with Tito, to
Discuss the administrative and legal procedures related to launching it into space. on the day
Wednesday, the Russian space agency already ordered the four cosmonauts
Stop the strike and go back to training.
"Eventually, he will go there", estimates Avi Har-Evan. "The Russians
need these 20 million, and even then they have a lot of problems, after they
They destroyed their national pride last week - the convert. I believe
That by the thirtieth of April the matter will be resolved, the Americans will agree to do
To the Russians this Jesta".
In science fiction books, space tourism has long been commonplace.
In reality, this possibility will probably be practical already in the near future.
Several international companies have been investigating the matter in recent years, and a company
Hilton even announced that it intends to soon build a hotel that will be transported in space around
Earth. "I think that in the future many people will be able to fly and travel
In space", estimates Gorbunov. "I can't believe that we are now flooded with applications
Of this kind, because today, in 2001, only healthy people, and those who are
They have a lot of unnecessary money, they will be able to fly into space. Anyway, we don't
travel agency and in the meantime we will approve additional such flights, if and when there are
Requests, only on the basis of an available place".
A spiritual experience
"He is very stressed now, but everything is focused on the goal," he said
In interviews with the media, my son Michael, 26 years old, I would not define the
My dad is a big adventurer or someone who is constantly looking for thrills. Overall
He is very conservative &#;8211 his whole life he wore a suit and tie
And now he will have to walk in a white shirt with a spacesuit on it."
Denis Tito is already saying that this is probably the most worthwhile deal he has made in his life,
A deal that will allow him "an amazing and unforgettable experience": "Only 400 people
At most have this experience, it is without a doubt the adventure
The ultimate. There is also a certain spiritual experience in this - to take off from a ball
the land, and see it from afar. I keep joking that I was on a pill
Haaretz for 60 years, and the time has come for me to be able to see exactly where
I lived all these years." *
The old astronaut
Although Denis Tito is 60 years old, he is older compared to the average age of
The astronauts who have been launched into space to date, but he will not be at the end of the month
Next to the oldest person who stayed outside the Earth. About three years ago
Years ago American Senator John Glenn did this, when he was 77 years old
In 1962, Glenn entered history for the first time, when he became the first person to circumnavigate
the earth After retiring from the space agency he was elected to the Senate on behalf of
Democratic Party. In 1997, Glenn exerted heavy pressure on NASA,
which finally approved his launch into space once again, claiming that this would allow
to carry out scientific studies on aging.
During the nine days that he stayed in space, Glen served as a "guinea pig" for ten
Experiments that examined the effect of weightlessness on the human body. many of the effects
These are similar to the changes that occur in the bodies of aging people on the surface of a planet
Our walk.
The NASA explanations failed to change the popular opinion, according to which the launch of
Elder Glenn was just a publicity stunt. Glen claimed that he did not suffer at all
Physical problems during the mission, apart from slight swelling in the face - a phenomenon
Common, resulting from the upward movement of fluids in the body. Anyway, with
Upon his return to Earth, his wife Annie informed Glenn: "You are not coming up anymore
opal".
Published in "Haaretz" 30/3/2001
