The space trip theme, employed by Red Bull, Virgin and AXE in their promotional efforts, has now been taken up in the new campaign by KLM. The Dutch airline is encouraging the international audience to participate in the KLM SPACE competition for a chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fly into space aboard the SXC Lynx. This revolutionary aircraft is set to make the first commercial space trip as part of  the larger project, Space Expedition Corporation (SXC), in partnership with KLM.

The KLM SPACE Facebook-based competition starts with an unusual event—the launch of a high-altitude driverless balloon. On April 22, it will be set off from the Nevada Desert into the skies. The path of the balloon is unpredictable, but one thing is clear—as it approaches the outer atmosphere, the balloon will gradually expand and finally explode at some altitude. The contestants have to guess the height at which it will happen (from 16km to 41 km) as well as the distance the balloon will travel from the launch site. The user who submits the most accurate prediction will win the ticket to space, worth $95,000.

Photo: A snapshot from the KLM SPACE website (click to enlarge)

The balloon will be equipped with cameras and a GPS-tracker, streaming data to the KLM website to let users follow the balloon’ journey in real time until it pops. Users can share their predictions with friends, asking them for endorsement to increase their chances to win. Friends who endorse participants can also join the game with a bigger place for themselves.

The KLM SPACE interactive experience can be enjoyed on both desktop, tablet and mobile devices. The campaign has been developed by the two Dutch agencies RAPP and DDB & Tribal Amsterdam with digital production by MediaMonks.

Photo: The KLM SPACE website running on different computer and mobile devices (click to enlarge)