MOSCOW - Citing financial imperatives, Russian space officials have softened their tough line on the much-hyped plans for a commercial flight to the international space station by pop singer Lance Bass.
"Considering our tough economic situation, we believe it would be an inadmissible luxury to use the third seat on the coming October flight for cargo," a top official at the Russian Aviation and Space Agency (Rosaviakosmos) said in an interview July 11.
The official said his agency wanted to get a clearer understanding of the "financial side" of Bass' bid to be the world's third space tourist and has asked for some sort of guarantee that the flight would be paid for. The decision to explore the possibility of Bass' flight was based on the idea that the $20 million joy ride would have a corporate sponsor, he said.
Gert Weyers, the managing director of Amsterdam-based Mir Corp., which is helping broker the deal, said from Moscow on July 12 that his company would refrain from any comment until it was prepared to release an official press release, expected early in the week of July 15.
A source told Space News last week that things were looking up and Bass and all the parties involved remained hopeful that the entertainer wouldl be on board when the Soyuz takes off for the ISS this fall.
"Things are going very well we just dont know when and announcement is going to be made," the source said.
The source confirmed that some money has changed hands, but declined to provide specifics.
The Rosaviakosmos official acknowledged that the time remaining for Bass to prepare for the flight was "very tight." He said his agency would appeal to its ISS partners for their approval just to "get the ball rolling" and to be prepared in the event that the financial arrangements prove acceptable.
"We're speaking about this very cautiously for now," the official said, adding that it remains unclear whether funding for the flight will indeed be available.
Last week, Bass, 23, began training in Russia at Star City near Moscow. On Thursday, MTV News reported that as part of his training, Bass would be dropped into the Black Sea for an emergency-splashdown test. He was also to be left in a Russian forest without food and supplies.
Just last month, Rosaviakosmos spokesman Sergei Gorbunov spoke of Bass' flight in far less equivocal terms, saying that the October mission was "out of the question" due to the short period of time left for the would-be space flight participant to prepare. Bass has undergone at least two medical examinations and is now doing a round of intensive training at Russian space facilities.
Space News Staff Writer Brian Berger contributed to this report.
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