Despite winning a spot on a SpaceX spaceflight, Kyle Hippchen had to give up his opportunity due to exceeding the weight limit.
Kyle Hippchen (43 years old) could not hide his disappointment when he was unable to become a member of the Inspiration 4 crew on SpaceX’s first tourist flight in September 2021.
The man had to relinquish his lucky flight spot to his college roommate because he was over the SpaceX weight limit by 36 kg, according to AP.
The news agency also reported that Hippchen spent $600 to purchase the chance to join the flight, while his friend Chris Sembroski only had to pay $50. In an interview, the pilot stated that he would forever regret this decision.
Kyle Hippchen (right) “regretfully” gave up his precious opportunity to his close friend Chris Sembroski (left). (Photo: AP)
In March 2021, despite knowing he was the luckiest among 72,000 people, Hippchen gave up the opportunity after reading SpaceX’s weight requirements. “I even tried to think of ways to lose 30 kg in six months. While it was feasible, it wasn’t good for my health,” he shared with AP.
Living in Florida, Kyle Hippchen is currently a captain working for Delta’s regional airline Endeavour Air. Therefore, he understands that setting weight limits is crucial for flight safety, but he still feels sad about missing out on this “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity. In fact, Hippchen couldn’t even bring himself to watch the movie about the flight on Netflix.
The sponsor of this flight, billionaire Jacob Isaacman, praised Hippchen and considered the pilot very generous for giving the prize to his friend.
SpaceX launched the crew into space aboard the Crew Dragon spacecraft on September 16, 2021. During the orbital flight, the four crew members encountered a problem with the restroom but fortunately did not face any more serious issues, Insider reported.
According to AP, Hippchen stood in the VIP section to attend the rocket launch at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. He shared that only about 50 people knew that he was the true lucky one.
To undertake the journey, all four crew members had to undergo a rigorous training process for months with SpaceX. The flight lasted three days and reached an altitude of 540 km, higher than the International Space Station (ISS) and comparable to the Hubble Space Telescope, Reuters reported.
The Inspiration4 crew of SpaceX safely landed in the Atlantic Ocean. (Photo: Getty Images)
The crew landed in the Atlantic Ocean after orbiting the Earth and conducting data collection tests for future missions.
Billionaire Jared Isaacman funded the entire flight, estimated to cost around $220 million. He gifted the three remaining tickets on the flight to Hayley Arceneaux, Sian Proctor, and Chris Sembroski—Kyle Hippchen’s college friend.
