Problems with refunds.

So you think that you had it bad; trying to prise a refund of a fuel surcharge for a flight that you never took, or attempting to squeeze even the acknowledgement of a refund department at Ryanair.

Well, think yourselves lucky.

A Japanese business man is trying to obtain a refund of $21 million from the US company Space Adventures. He claims that his space flight was cancelled at the last minute to make way for an American Space Tourist who coincidentally is a recent investor in the endeavour.

After spending weeks training for the Russian flight he was yanked off the list only a month before departure. His kidney stones were quoted as the reason, a condition that had apparantly been known to the company all along.

The truth, as they say, will out; possibly. In the meantime have some pity for a chap who spent $21 million on a travel dream only to find himself remaining firmly on earth and another whizzing around the world from a truly dizzying height in his place.