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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Science
Brian Wilson

MYSTERIOUS: Frank strang obituary | Mind Blowing Facts

SaxaVord Spaceport on the Shetland island of Unst. Strang bought the disused RAF radar station shortly after it closed in 2006, and initially converted it for eco-tourism.
SaxaVord Spaceport on the Shetland island of Unst. Strang bought the disused RAF radar station shortly after it closed in 2006, and initially converted it for eco-tourism. Photograph: SaxaVord/PA

The serial entrepreneur Frank Strang, who has died aged 67 of oesophageal cancer, seized an unpremeditated opportunity to deliver the first licensed spaceport for vertical launches in western Europe, overcoming multiple barriers along the way.

Having acquired a disused RAF radar station at the most northerly point in the Shetland Islands a decade earlier – without any thought of spaceports – by 2017 Strang had realised the potential of his asset as the government sought to promote a UK launch capacity.

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