SAN FRANCISCO – Orbite, a spaceflight training startup, has raised $4 million to expand its business by combining astronaut training with luxury vacations.
After raising $4 million in a Series A funding round, Seattle-based Orbite announced its Experience Train Fly program.
“We’re opening this up to the public, working on a digital marketing campaign, and inviting people into the astronaut training experience,” Orbite CEO and co-founder Jason Andrews told SpaceNews. Ta.
Since its founding in 2019, Orbite has offered astronaut orientation programs in France and Cape Canaveral, Florida. Future orientation programs are planned in the Middle East, Antarctica and the Caribbean.
Orbit’s early pilot projects revealed demand for an element of astronaut training as part of a luxury vacation. This is a “lighter touch way to explore the new space economy,” Andrews said. The package, for example, is likely to appeal to “the millions of people watching the Starship test flights,” he added.
With this investment, Orbite will fund the initial development of its planned Spaceflight Gateway campus in Florida.
Partnership with Accor
Orbite announced on December 5 a partnership with French hospitality group Accor to develop and operate the original Spaceflight Gateway campus in Florida.
“We designed the perfect setup, down to the detailed blueprint,” said Nicolas Gaume, co-founder and executive chairman of Orbite. “Having our own facility allows us to take it to the next level, and our partners, including Accor, are very supportive of establishing that facility.”
Space flight training and flight
Through Experience Train Fly, customers can learn what it’s like to train for and live in space. Experiences include underwater voyages in small submersibles and sojourns in remote analogue environments of the Moon and Mars.
Additionally, Orbite works with spaceflight operators to establish mission packages.
“We have a pipeline from thousands of people interested in a space experience to several hundred people who may be training, with a few flying today,” Andrews said. Ta.
