http://www.technewsworld.com/story/Spac ... 75145.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/18/scien ... ation.html
When the SpaceX Dragon capsule blasts off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station atop the company's Falcon rocket Saturday morning, it will be doing more than just setting off on another cargo-laden trip to the International Space Station.
Rather, as the very first commercial attempt ever to fly to the ISS, this test launch will be making history.
"It's almost like the lead-up to Apollo, in my mind," said Mike Horkachuck, NASA's project executive for SpaceX. "You had Mercury, then you had Gemini, and eventually you had Apollo.
"This would be similar in the sense that we're not going to the moon or anything as spectacular as that, but we are in the beginnings of commercializing space," Horkachuck added. "This may be the Mercury equivalent to eventually flying crew and then eventually leading to, in the long run, passenger travel in space."
