Flat Earth Space Travel, in accordance with UA model, is much cheaper than Round Earth Space Travel. Bear in mind that the priniciple of Universal Acceleration dictates that in order to escape the Earth's atmosphere vertically would require the craft to constantly accelerate at 9.8m/s^2. After only a brief time, this would become impossible and the craft would return to the atmosphere.
In order to travel in space in the FE model, craft would have to run vertically along the Universal Accelerator, much like cars, or perhaps boats. This sort of technology does not require such egregious funding as the made up RE Space program does.
NASA will tell you it costs 15000 USD to put a pound of matter into space. It probably costs more if you want it to actually FLY THROUGH space for any length of time, but to leave the Earth, the only expense comes from lifting matter over the Ice Wall and carting it around on "space-boats".