On April 26, 2007, famed theoretical physicist Professor Stephen Hawking became the
first disabled person to realize the dream of floating in weightlessness. Hawking’s four minutes in microgravity were the subject of 14 front-page stories, over
2,000 online features (including homepage placements on MSN, AOL, and the
websites of USA Today and The Washington Post), and 1,000 broadcast segments in
82 of the United States’ top 100 media markets (including NBC Nightly News, the
TODAY Show, Good Morning America, and CNN). In total, the story appeared in more
than 200 countries and territories around the world, garnering more than 1,600
placements and >250 million media impressions.
1. A unique, global opportunity: Disabled children
following in the steps of Stephen Hawking!
"For someone like me
whose muscles don't work
very well, it is bliss to be
weightless."
--Professor Stephen Hawking
A CONFIDENTIAL BRIEFING TO {SPONSOR}
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3. The Weightless Experience
SECTION 1 – STEPHEN HAWKING LEADS THE WAY
On April 26, 2007, famed theoretical physicist Professor Stephen Hawking became the
first disabled person to realize the dream of floating in weightlessness.
This exceptional event, which captured world-wide media attention, has inspired other
disabled people to pursue Professor Hawking’s dream.
“I have been wheelchair-bound
for almost four decades and the
chance to float free in zero g
will be wonderful.”
-- STEPHEN HAWKING’S PREFLIGHT PRESS CONFERENCE
CONFIDENTIAL
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5. The Weightless Experience
SECTION 2 – ZERO-G MISSION IMPACT: PROVEN MEDIA SUCCESS
Hawking’s four minutes in microgravity were the subject of 14 front-page stories, over
2,000 online features (including homepage placements on MSN, AOL, and the
websites of USA Today and The Washington Post), and 1,000 broadcast segments in
82 of the United States’ top 100 media markets (including NBC Nightly News, the
TODAY Show, Good Morning America, and CNN). In total, the story appeared in more
than 200 countries and territories around the world, garnering more than 1,600
placements and >250 million media impressions.
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7. The Weightless Experience
SECTION 3- ZERO-G’S 2008 TRIAL PROGRAM
In November 2008, jointly with Nickelodeon, ZERO-G conducted a pilot program flying
a group of disabled children. The program was a stellar success, featured on
Nickelodeon’s TV Nick News, as it followed four wheelchair-bound kids into zero gravity
for “The View from My Chair” special series. For several of these kids, it was the first
time they had ever moved unassisted or without the aid of a wheelchair.
As the four children floated, spun, and played during their 7 minutes of weightlessness
the program demonstrated without a doubt that these kids (ages 10 – 14) can
significantly benefit from this extraordinary experience.
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9. The Weightless Experience
SECTION 4 – OPPORTUNITY FOR {SPONSOR}
The Vision: Create a program which will fly 150 disabled
children into Weightlessness, giving them the opportunity to
fulfill their dreams and float like Astronauts.
Based on the success and unprecedented media from our Hawking and Nickelodeon
flights, Zero-G seeks to create a nationwide program to fly 150 disabled kids in 5 Cities.
We seek a sponsor to underwrite/brand this opportunity. Key elements include:
- Five (5) US cities (chosen by Sponsor)
- Two (2) Zero-G flights per city (15 disabled kids per flight)
- 150 disabled children (30 per city)
- Five (5) media per flight (50 media total over 10 flights)
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11. The Weightless Experience
SECTION 5 – MEDIA & PUBLIC RELATIONS OPPORTUNITY
Following are the unique opportunities to create meaningful media, government and
public relations opportunities:
1. Program announcement – the vision of the program
2. Announcement of the 5 cities (perhaps with partner organizations)
3. Begin selection of the 150 students (with organizational partners)
4. Announcement of 150 disabled children chosen to participate
5. Pre-flight Press Conference in each city
6. Post-flight Press Conference (members of Congress meeting flight)
7. Media diary including documentary coverage
Level & Type of Coverage
- National coverage (TV news; talk-shows; print; blogs; on-line)
- Regional coverage (TV news; print; blogs; on-line)
- Local covers (kid by kid, school by school)
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13. The Weightless Experience
SECTION 5- BENEFITS OF SPONSORSHIP
This opportunity is unique in the history of Zero-G and offers incredible benefits:
1. Title Sponsorship: The {SPONSOR} Weightless Flights for Disabled Children
2. Corporate branding: On plane exterior, interior and on flight suits
3. Key City Targeting: Choose five cities of interest to {SPONSOR}
4. National Media: This is a historic event that will draw national media
5. Local/Regional Media: This will be the story of the year for key cities
6. Integration of secondary Sponsors: {SPONSOR} can involve key “secondary
sponsors” who are local to each city… The New York Flights presented by XYZ
7. Government Relations: Opportunity to include local and national representatives
8. Historic Event: These flights will be historic, captured on television
9. Public Good Will: The story will warm the hearts of the public
10.Content: Rights to all photography and video during workshop, flight, and
appropriate publicity events
11.Documentaries: Rights to partner with leading documentary production crews
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15. The Weightless Experience
WHY JOIN US?
ZERO-G can provide life-changing experiences for children whose lives are impacted
by disability. By sponsoring this innovative program, {SPONSOR} will gain tremendous
positive media and good will. This program is truly global and selfless.
As evidenced by the media reaction to Steven Hawking’s 2007 flight and to the
program profiled by Nick News in 2008, this program will secure great publicity on a
global, national and local level.
ZERO-G has the ability to implement this flawlessly.
NEXT STEPS
Provide ZERO-G an indication of interest.
Set up a face-to-face meeting to discuss details further
ZERO-G will provide pricing, contract terms and further details.
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17. The Weightless Experience
APPENDIX – ABOUT ZERO-G
ZERO Gravity Corporation (ZERO-G) is a privately held space entertainment and
tourism company whose mission is to make the excitement and adventure of
weightlessness accessible to the public.
The experience offered by ZERO-G is the only public opportunity on Earth for
individuals to experience true weightlessness without going to space. This is the
identical weightless flight experience used by NASA to train its astronauts and used by
Ron Howard and Tom Hanks to film Apollo-13.
ZERO-G is the only provider of parabolic or weightless flights authorized by the Federal
Aviation Administration, with regular operations based out of Las Vegas, Nevada, and
the NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The company currently uses a modified
Boeing 727-200 aircraft and holds a patent and Supplemental Type Certificate (STC)
for the conversion of a 727 for parabolic flight. ZERO-G hosts thousands of flyers each
year, flying under the same regulations set for large commercial passenger airliners.
ZERO-G has been selected by NASA as the sole provider of commercial
parabolic flights for astronaut training and research flights.
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APPENDIX –ZERO-G SAFETY
Safety is the first and highest priority for ZERO-G. We have an outstanding safety
record of flying over 5,000 passengers since 2004.
In addition, NASA, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Russian Space Program, and
the European Space Agency (ESA) have performed parabolic flights for 45 years
without incident. NASA alone has performed more than 150,000 parabolas on aircrafts
such as the KC-135, C-9 and Learjet-25. Now, NASA has selected ZERO-G as its
partner and provider of parabolic flights based on ZERO-G’s dedication to passenger
safety.
ZERO-G flights are fully insured, just like every commercial airline. In addition, ZERO-G
carries $200 million of third-party liability insurance and $70M of passenger liability
insurance ($2M per seat).
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