| Fairfax, Va., March 9, 2006 – One
of the early visionaries of the space tourism industry—Omega World
Travel President and CEO Gloria Bohan—applauds the recent government
recognition of the field, but says that entrepreneurs have been the major
reason behind the advent of commercial passenger space travel and not
any official pronouncement.
After the Federal Aviation Administration’s December release of
human space flight requirements and last month’s announcement by
the Secretary of Transportation that licensing for spacecraft to carry
commercial passengers could happen as early as 2008, Gloria Bohan is encouraged,
but somewhat pragmatic about where the impetus for space tourism lies.
“Entrepreneurial endeavors like ZERO-G Weightless Flights and the
X PRIZE Foundation have blazed the trail of space tourism,” she
said. “Others are playing catch-up, but it’s gratifying to
witness this new government focus, though it was anticipated long ago.”
Zero Gravity Corporation, or ZERO-G (GoZeroG.com), is a privately held
space entertainment and tourism company making the adventure of space
accessible to the public through providing weightless flights. The X PRIZE
Foundation (Xprize.org) provided the financial reward and motivation for
the first non-government human spaceflight.
“Gloria Bohan is a travel industry innovator who has been actively
involved in the space tourism movement for the past decade,” said
Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Chairman & CEO of X Prize and ZERO-G. “I
first met her at a 1997 NASA workshop when she gave a keynote speech on
the future of space travel. Her ability to connect the traditional tourism
field with space travel is very unique.”
In a recent Travel Agent Magazine cover story about commercial passenger
space travel, Space Tourism Society founder John Spencer noted, “When
Gloria [Bohan] got involved, it was a transitional moment for the early
space tourism movement, because she was from a profession outside of the
space industry. Her credibility and voice added to the potential.”
Bohan said in the same December, 2005 article that the burgeoning field
must gain momentum with travel agents at the grassroots level. “It
is going to take creativity on the part of the agent,” she said.
“There is a wealth of interesting people out there, [flight] museums,
and [space] centers…that agents should get to know as a unique kind
of product. It’s definitely a new opportunity, but it’s going
to take work…”
Along with offering customized travel solutions to businesses all over
the world, Gloria Bohan’s organization Omega World Travel (OmegaTravel.com)
books ZERO-G Weightless Flights and other unique adventure travel experiences.
“For everyone devoted to the travel field, there is no way to escape
the excitement of the future of space tourism,” Bohan said. “Continuing
to take the right steps to space will ensure that this ultimate travel
experience becomes a reality.”
About Omega World Travel
Recognized in the diversity field as the nation’s top woman-owned
business, Fairfax, Va.-based Omega World Travel (OmegaTravel.com) was
launched by Founder and President Gloria Bohan as an independent travel
agency in 1972. Now ranked by Business Travel News as the number two travel
management company in the U.S., over 1100 employees provide online travel
solutions—as well as personalized service at 200 locations worldwide—to
a diverse clientele: from individual leisure travelers to Fortune 500
enterprises and the federal government. Omega World Travel owns TravTech
Inc. (TravTech.com), a travel technology provider, and Cruise.com, the
Internet’s largest cruise specialist.
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