European Company Unveils Space Plane

From CNN.com - Science & Space:

European aerospace company EADS on Wednesday unveiled a model of a jet designed to take tourists into space, rocketing paying passengers to weightlessness at more than 62 miles above the Earth. EADS Astrium said it hoped the space jet -- which looks much like a conventional aircraft although it is outfitted with rocket engines -- will be operational by next year, with the first flight scheduled for 2012. Tickets are expected to cost $199,000-$265,000, said the company, which displayed a full-scale model in Paris. The space jet would take off from regular airports using conventional jet engines. Upon reaching an altitude of about 7 ½-miles, the pilot would ignite the rocket engines, sending the craft to an altitude of 37 miles in 80 seconds.

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