Join Virgin 100 mile club, fly into space

Become a member of the 100 mile club and redeem it in the blue yonder.

What is it?

So you have been pampered on all the best airlines, flown every kind of aircraft and have also been to Farnborough to see the mighty A380 actually lift off. What next, you ask.

Well, fly Virgin Atlantic Upper Class for the next one-and-half months, earn "double miles" quickly and you may get a chance to see some heavenly bodies. The real ones, that is.

Why are we writing about it?

Virgin Atlantic, Britain's second largest long-haul airline, has announced the Double Miles-Double Smiles offer as a part of its ongoing frequent flyer initiatives for its Upper Class members on its India-London sector.

In the offer, you earn twice the miles, which you can redeem as -- hold your breath -- space miles. Earn enough and you can become a member of the 100 mile high club and redeem a space trip with Virgin Galactic -- the world's first spaceline.

What's in it for me?

How about becoming one of the first non-professional astronauts on earth and fly SpaceShipOne -- a specially designed space ship that allows "affordable" suborbital space tourism for the first time?

Now if you are not that lucky, you can definitely spend those miles on the usual gamut of stuff: reward flights, upgrades and limo transfers, car hire, hotel breaks, holidays and helicopter flights.

What are the damages?

For a trip with Virgin Galactic into space, you will need to earn two million Flying Club miles on Virgin Atlantic flights to be able to redeem them as space miles. Sadly, the offer remains only till 15th January 2007 -- so you need to add up your miles as soon as possible.

Or else, with a set payment of $200,000, and a minimum refundable deposit of $20,000, you can make your reservations to experience the ultimate adventure. Which includes three days of pre-flight preparation, bonding and training onsite at the spaceport.

Take it or leave it?

Too short a notice. Start earning points anyway till another offer for a Virgin space flight comes along.