Several years ago, space flights were considered the exclusive prerogative of the most scientifically and technically advanced states. The first roles in the space race were the USSR and the USA. And if Soviet scientists immediately made a choice in favor of a single-use multi-stage launch vehicle, the Americans relied on the Shuttle spacecraft, which, after a space flight, could return to Earth, turning into an airplane. Thus, the American spacecraft could be used many times.
The loss of two of the five American ships led to the shuttle program being canceled several years ago. And Russia - the legal successor of the USSR - has become a de facto monopoly in space transportation, and most importantly, in controlled space flights. At present, the cost of a flight of one American astronaut on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft ranges from 62 to 63 million dollars.
The Soyuz has deservedly the reputation of a very reliable ship. However, it can already be considered obsolete. In addition, since the collapse of the USSR also destroyed many economic ties between the former republics, the production of most of the parts for the "Union" was discontinued. Now they have to be produced in small batches, which, naturally, dramatically increases the cost of the parts themselves, and raises the cost of Soyuz.
Recently, private companies have been trying more and more insistently to invade the lucrative space transportation market. For example, SpaceExploration Technologies. She designed and built the private spacecraft Dragon, successfully launched into space on May 22 from Cape Canaveral airfield, USA. The Dragon, launched into orbit by the Falcon 9 rocket, was used as a cargo ship for the International Space Station. Moreover, if all the former existing cargo ships were disposable, that is, burned up on the way back in the dense layers of the atmosphere, then the "Dragon" will be able to return to earth.
The management of Space Exploration Technologies declares that in case of successful approbation as a cargo ship, "Dragon" in the future will also be used to transport people. It will be able to carry up to 7 people in one flight (while the Soyuz can carry a maximum of 3). The estimated cost of transporting one astronaut is about $ 20 million.
There is no doubt that private space flights are a matter of the near future. It is still difficult to predict what there may be more - pluses or minuses. Of course, competition always leads to an increase in the quality of products or services, a decrease in production costs, and the development of technologies. On the other hand, in the struggle of large corporations for such a promising and profitable market, business can reach very negative consequences.
