Michael Gustin, the team at Skytech Aerospace and partners are developing the world’s first fully electric space tourism vehicle. Michael and Skytech Aerospace have envisioned making space travel for regular people affordable. At present, only 0.000001% of the world’s population can travel to space.
Space travel is costly for many reasons, notwithstanding the fact that most space vehicles or rockets need a lot of fuel. Also, most rockets can’t carry dozens of passengers like a Boeing 747, and so the cost associated with launching a rocket is still prohibitively high and borne by the few who can afford to pay for it.
Michael’s unique background, coupled with the fact that Skytech, brings together some of the leaders in the aerospace industry, many of whom are ex-military with a history of successfully pulling off large projects. Skytech hopes to lower the prohibitive cost of space travel with an ambitious electric aerospace system capable of limitless launches and loitering using a revolutionary power system developed by partnering with Electric Sky.
Nix Lee of Spine PR, a local PR agency, recently sat down with Michael Gustin for a brief interview as Skytech makes final preparations for its SEED round of investment. “Below is a transcribed version of the recorded interview.”
It’s really a great privilege to speak with you. You are the CEO of Skytech and Reality Hacker today. Michael, why don’t you give us a 50,000 feet view of yourself and your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in the foster care system, where I endured a series of abuse. As a result, I grew up dysfunctionally, and in my young adult years, this showed up so dramatically that it drove me to find a way to heal. I was really desperate to discover an identity apart from my dysfunction, as I think many of us are.
Before I started my healing journey, I really had a desire to help people, but I could never sustain any sort of project that did much good long term. Through my transformation, the qualities required to successfully lead an organization have matured in me, something of which I am very grateful for. Serving humans and providing opportunities for all of us to experience greater states of being and awareness is on my priority list.
It is my firm conviction and experience that new, expansive states of being and awareness ultimately lead to greater quality of ideas, action and results. I believe that the same principle applies to solving the biggest problems facing our planet currently.
Buckminster Fuller said something to the effect of, “you don’t change the old systems by focusing on them. You change old systems by building new ones.” I believe that finding ways to integrate this concept on a global level is a big piece in helping our species move forward in ways we have never before. This is the foundational priority of our space tourism programs and all of my ventures.
Wow, that’s very inspiring, Michael. People tend to only see the highlight reel of your life, but there is always a journey, and in your case, it was definitely not a walk in the park. What were some of the most difficult personal challenges you had to overcome to become a successful founder?
Having an addicted mother and being tossed around from home to home definitely created a large gaping hole of instability, inconsistency and insecurity from a very young age. Not many people make it through what I have been through.
The majority of children raised in the foster care system can’t escape the ramifications of their trauma, and in that sense, I am an anomaly. A big part of my own journey has been instilling within myself the values, ethics, and character that supports successful leadership, and that work continues even to this day.
However, the types of environments that I grew up in also forged priceless values in me as well, like finding security internally rather than transience. The ability to ‘continue moving forward when everything is pointing the other way. It has also made me tremendously adaptable and supported my ability to pivot or stay the course in the face of adversity or disappointing data.
I recognize that building a company like Skytech takes a lot of hard work, perseverance, trial and error, and courage, and I believe what I have overcome in my life really supports my ability to work successfully with our team to achieve our goals.
Thank you for sharing. What do you/or company specialized in, and how are you different from the competition in your space?
Our main specialization for Skytech Aerospace is developing a fully electric space tourism program along with an eventual focus on private & commercial point-to-point travel.
I’m very grateful that we get to be… an anomaly (laughs) in that we are bringing fully-electric flight to the forefront of global aerospace, space tourism, and eventually space launch.
Our technology allows us to drastically reduce flight operation costs and enables zero-emission flight. This allows us to operate our space tourism, private and commercial programs at a fraction of the cost of our competitors, making it tremendously affordable for our customers.
This ultimately means we can send a lot more people to space at a fraction of the cost of our competitors without the compounding negative effects to our environment from repeated launches.
What is your one ‘must-do’ for anyone who wishes for change and success in their life?
There is a timeless proverb that has come to life for me and continues to do so every day, and that is “as a person thinks in their heart, so they become.”
My basic convictions of myself define what is and is not possible for me at any given moment. As my basic convictions shift and evolve, my experiences in the world shift along with my ideas of what is and what is not possible.
I interpret all phenomena and events I experience throughout my life through the lens of the ideas and values that I carry about myself. I firmly believe that aligning my beliefs and values with the version of me that is most successful has been a direct factor in all of my success.
Speaking of success, what does the word mean to you? How does it define you?
Success to me implies fulfillment. It also means maintaining fulfilling work. I believe deep down, each of us has and can find a genuine desire to serve the world. I do not believe there is ever true success without discovering that fulfillment, both apart from our work and in our work. I believe service is a major piece of fulfillment. We feel fulfilled when we are genuinely and authentically serving others. I’ve never met someone who is serving people with their own passions, unhappy. So, I believe that somewhere between that crossroads of your greatest idea of service, authenticity, fulfillment and expansion, lies your personal success.
Although I tend not to internally try and criticize myself too much, I definitely notice myself defining myself by my service. I know…a mouthful.
I notice time and time again that if I am not providing something transformative to other humans, in some way, shape or form, it’s just not something that I see myself pursuing long term.
So, where to from here? What are the next big steps you’re planning?
Right now, we are building relationships with Private Investors, VC and PE firms, finding the right partners to help lead and launch our journey into space. I will also be speaking later this month at a PGS workshop, alongside Daniel Faber, CEO of OrbitFab, Emily King and more at a panel discussion revolving around the environmental and extraterrestrial effects and ramifications of mining in space and on other orbital bodies.
Finally, how can people connect with you if they want to learn more?
You can find us on the web at www.skytech-holdings.com, and you can find me on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeltgustin. All investor inquiries can be directed to: [email protected]
The new system potentially slashes the present flight time and reduces operating costs by 90%. Furthermore, it has zero emissions, is smooth and quiet. Skytech plans to run multiple flights daily.
The goal, according to Skytech, is to become completely clean by 2050, something not possible with conventional rockets. The lower cost and the reusable nature of Skytech’s rockets will drastically reduce the cost of space travel, making it possible for the average person to visit space.
About Skytech
Skytech Aerospace was founded to dramatically lower the financial and environmental cost of point-to-point regional travel, space tourism adventures, and eventual space launch services, making space exploration greener and more accessible for everyone.
Media Contact
Company Name: Skytech Aerospace
Contact Person: Michael Gustin
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Address:609 S Cascade Apt 529
City: Colorado Springs
State: CO 80903
Country: United States
Website: https://www.skytechspace.io/