Scotty gets his final wish fulfilled

Scotty gets his final wish fulfilled
Star Trek actor James Doohan finally got his last wish when his ashes were blasted off into space on a SpaceLoft XL rocket from New Mexico.

Doohan, immortalized for his role of Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in Star Trek, had wanted his ashes to be sent into space after Gene Roddenberry, creator of Star Trek, had his ashes blasted into space in 1997. Wende Doohan and astronaut Gordon Cooper's widow Susan pressed the button to launch the rocket.

"For the amount of emotion that was involved, it was amazing how technical and smoothly everything ran. He [James Doohan] would so have loved to have gone into space as Colonel Cooper did in real life. He enjoyed some of that vicariously through Scotty and when Gene Roddenberry's ashes were sent into space, he said, 'That's what you have to do with me'", she said.

The rocket also carried remains of over 200 other people and was the first successful launch from the new commercial spaceport developed in New Mexico. The flight was organized by Space Services Inc, which charges $495 to launch a single gram of ashes into space. The rocket flew 70 miles above the planet and the two separated parts carrying the remains came down with the help of parachutes.