Curacao: Where Dreams Take Flight
By 2014, the island of Curacao could complete its SpacePort project.
Curacao Airport Holding Managing Director Maurice Adriaens announced the projected launch date last week, as part of his presentation at the Caribbean ICT Roadshow and 9th Caribbean Internet Governance Forum, which was held at the Curacao World Trade Centre from September 9 to 11.
Passengers will be launched from the Curacao spaceport into suborbital spaceflight above the surface of the Earth and then safely looped back to Earth, according to an online promotional video on the Space Expedition Corporation's official website.
Addressing an audience that included representatives of governments, Internet Service Providers, telecommunications operators and regulators, as well as public and private sector professionals from the health, education and e-commerce sectors, Adriaens explained why he felt Curacao was the “perfect venue” for the ambitious project.
“This is my dream! Why not? Why not have space travel from right here in Curacao?” Adriaens said, speaking on the second day of the Roadshow.
His presentation highlighted the downstream economic benefits that would flow from the development of an indigenous commercial human spaceflight industry. The prospect of transitioning the island’s economy from traditional tourism to space tourism generated great interest in the room and amongst the foreigners represented at the regional gathering.
“It’s a good dream, isn’t it?” he asked. “So…who wants to be a Curanaut?”