Last Friday as part of the Treasure Coast Media Breakfast event I listened to a presentation about the new Shuttle Launch Experience at Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex. Lisa Malone of NASA and Daniel LeBlanc of the Delaware North Companies discussed the new attraction and the marketing campaign building up to a May 2007 opening. From the NASA site:

When the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex opens the 44,000-square-foot Shuttle Launch Experience in early 2007, guests won't have to battle silly looking aliens or perform virtual-reality stunts they've seen many times before. Instead, this simulator will take guests on an incredible journey only astronauts have experienced -- launching into orbit aboard a Space Shuttle.

"It's not a thrill ride," said Dan LeBlanc, chief operating officer of the Visitor Complex. "You won't be dodging asteroids or battling any aliens. We have worked hard to ensure that it is as close as you can be to simulating the reality of a Space Shuttle launch within the confines of Earth's gravity."

When they opened up for questions I asked how the recent issues with EPCOT Mission Space were going to impact their marketing plans. Daniel restated that it was not a thrill ride and that they are working closely with NASA safety engineers to provide a safe ride. However, the majority of questions from the audience focussed on safety, motion sickness, height requirements and other similar issues. Judging by the questions, it is impacting their message.

I think that no matter how hard they try, the new attraction is always going to be compared to Mission Space. With the filing of a lawsuit over a recent death at the ride, the 'Mission Space' story is once again in the papers. (Jennifer Wakefield has done a good job of documenting the media coverage related to the Mission Space accidents: Part 1, Part 2)

It will be interesting to see if/how the Visitors Center modifies their campaign and if they can ever distance themselves from Mission Space.