How can spacecraft design enhance the passenger experience for suborbital flights?

Safety is paramount in spacecraft design, particularly for suborbital missions with their extreme conditions. Key elements include a pressurized cabin for comfort, a reliable propulsion system for controlled motion, a thermal protection system to shield against temperature extremes, and a parachute or wing system for safe landings. Equally crucial is a robust emergency system to abort or rescue in case of malfunctions. Prioritizing these features ensures passenger well-being and enhances their overall experience, allowing them to savor the thrill of suborbital flight with confidence

It is critical to inform passengers about the safety features of the spacecraft, just as you would with passengers on an airplane. Provide a diverse mix of safety education, including physical material AND in-person training programs. Inform passengers WHAT they must do an emergency and WHERE they can find the appropriate safety resources and equipment. Perform interactive safety drills where possible.

Having these safety features is a must for realizing the space tourism. The passengers need to be trained before flight on ground and need to be continuously reminded of Do’s and Don’ts during the flight. With passengers from different backgrounds technical or non-technical, There is no limit to how much repetitive information is available on displays, training consoles etc.

The main issues are going to be the sudden increase in positive and negative gravitational forces. Many people could try something like mission space at Disney as a qualifier to even see if they could handle some gravitation force. If people think the seats on planes are crammed, well going into a sub-orbital will have challenges of space. Getting an aircraft to get that high altitude wise needs to make sense from a cost standpoint, but that also means more people crammed up per flight to make it affordable enough. People will essentially have to train prior to going into sub-orbital space tours.

Comfort elements can be different depending on the purpose of the suborbital flight. Comfort elements to prioritize will be different on science flight compared to a tourism flight. Overall, incorporating comfortable seating arrangements which are both safe and adjustable to meet the passenger's ergonomics. Additionally, providing a spacious cabin is important to prevent passengers(mainly on tourism flights) from experiencing symptoms associated with small, tight spaces who may have not had sufficient prior preparation. For science flights, ensure there is a distinct space(whether physically or demonstrated during training) for where each passenger will conduct their science objectives. For tourism, large panoramic windows are KEY.

Need a negative pressure tube to capture vomit for each passenger. Otherwise it's going to float around the cabin in a most unpleasant way and the smell... good lord the smell...

Affordability is a key aspect of efforts like this. However comfort and the ability to better observe the surroundings is another. What’s the sense in making it to space and you really didn’t get a chance to look around and enjoys the momment.

A great choice would be constant communication with crew members through their headset, with a push to talk feature on their gloves. It would also be great to offer a live feed of the passengers while they experience their orbital adventures in real time. After he flight is I’ve the feed can be accessed by passengers and shared by them only. This would offer kind of a members only incentive. Also they could become affiliate marketers for commercial flight companies and offer discounted packages to new clients.

Careful consideration is needed in determining the level of interaction allowed between crew and passengers to not affect safety and security of flight.

You need to consider the different types of interaction. 1. Interaction with the environment. 2. Interaction with passengers 3. Interaction with crew & external. (Mainly science) Interaction with environment considers how people interact with elements within the cabin. Are the chairs comfortable, is there a great place to take selfies, is there a space to perform my science objectives? Interaction with other passengers includes utilizing communication technologies to make communication feel natural and effortless, especially when undergoing science on the flight.

It is critical to understand the differences between suborbital flights for science and tourism. Safety should likely remain constant for both but comfort and interaction will have vastly different importance and implications to consider for the respective purpose of the flight.

Fly to take off like passenger aircrafts. Land like an aircraft on land. Or Land like a helicopter on a ocean vessel launcher. The above characteristics are safe, reusable and improvable as the vehicle is winged, with multi type engines - air breathing, rocket and electric propulsion in Space - in 2 flavours EM Drives and Propellant thrusters using MHD principle. All the above is understood clearly. The key is energy on board the vehicle to implement. If you can generate in MW or GW on board without nuclear power (for safety reasons), it becomes straightforward. Rest are proven. Design Build Fly should be the strategy. Utility in applications over a wide variety. Can it pick up debris or an satellite or even an astronaut stranded ?