Jim Oberg posts:

A month ago, Lance Bass’s promoters purchased four weeks of spaceflight training for him, from the Gagarin Center at Star City (in a deal that Klimuk would sell to anybody for a price of about $100,000 or so). That training interval has now ended — there was supposed to be a zero-G airplane flight over the weekend, but no word that it happened. Last week, also, word from Moscow was that the Bass team needed to pay a first down payment of $1.5 million to continue preparing for the Soyuz mission in October. But as of the ‘final’ due date last Friday, there was no word except that maybe it would happen ‘next Monday’ (this, from CNN). There are no reports that it has happened today (Monday). Does this mean the money has run out, and all we have left are more promises? When — if ever — will we see any proof that the project can afford the REAL cost of the flight?

Time is running short, and it does appear, amidst all of the rumors, that the tactics are aimed at buying time. On the other hand, there have also been rumors that a second sponsor has been lined up, along with Radio Shack, to be announced today. We’ll see shortly.