Thawte Founder Fails Russian 'Web of Trust'
http://cgi.canoe.ca/CNEWSSpace0110/05_tourist-ap.html Russian officials reject tourist MOSCOW (AP) -- Officials rejected a South African Internet tycoon's bid to fly to the International Space Station because he made unreasonable demands, Russian news agencies reported Friday. Mark Shuttleworth, 27, underwent a month of tests and preparation at the Star City cosmonaut training center outside Moscow over the summer. But the Cape Town native failed to conclude a contract to become the second tourist in space. California tycoon Dennis Tito, who reportedly paid $20 million to Russia's cash-strapped space agency, made an eight-day trip to the station last spring. "All attempts to bring Shuttleworth's conditions into correspondence with regular practice have been abortive," the ITAR-Tass news agency quoted Russian Space Agency director Yuri Koptev as saying. Koptev said that Shuttleworth had insisted on a minimum of two weeks in space, instead of the eight to 10 days the space agency favored. "This demand would throw off the flight schedule," Koptev said. Koptev said that Shuttleworth had also expected a free second flight to space if the first spacecraft failed to dock with the station, ITAR-Tass reported.
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Bill Scannell