Richard Branson, British billionaire and owner of the Virgin Group, on Sunday made history when he safely returned to Earth aboard the first fully crewed Virgin Galactic test flight to space.
Virgin Galactic, a subcompany of the Virgin Group, was formed by Branson in 2004 with the goal of launching commercial space travel. According to Branson's recent activity on Twitter, Virgin Galactic's goals are becoming reality in the billionaire-driven race for space tourism.
"It's a beautiful day to go to space," Branson tweeted in the early morning hours of the flight's launch day with a video of himself pedaling to Spaceport on a bicycle. "We've arrived at @Spaceport_NM."
The test flight took place aboard the VSS Unity at Spaceport America, a facility owned by the State of New Mexico. Virgin Galactic leases a portion of the 18,000-acre in the Jornada del Muerto desert basin, 45 miles north of Las Cruces, New Mexico, and 20 miles southeast of Truth or Consequences.
Branson documented his brief jaunt into the stratosphere on Twitter, where he said that he had "dreamt about this moment" of being in space since childhood.
The extraterrestrial traveler was joined by fellow billionaire businessman Elon Musk before Sunday's trip. In a tweet, Branson included a photo of the two taken at an undisclosed location shortly before arriving at Spaceport in New Mexico.
"Big day ahead. Great to start the morning with a friend," Branson wrote. "Feeling good, feeling excited, feeling ready."
In addition to Branson, the VSS Unity carried five Virgin Galactic employees more than 50 miles above the New Mexico desert and out of Earth's atmosphere.
"My mission statement is to turn the dream of space travel into a reality," Branson said, "for my grandchildren, for your grandchildren, for everyone."
When the Virgin Galactic voyage flight touched back down, 70-year-old Branson called the moment "the dawn of a new space age."
The mega-wealthy are racing to stake the first claims in commercial space travel and tourism; nipping at Branson's heels is Amazon's Jeff Bezos, another multi-billionaire looking for grounds in the emerging industry where tickets to ride cost in the hundreds of thousands.
Tickets for the Virgin Galactic commercial flights, which are scheduled to launch beginning in 2022, are approximately $250,000 each. The company said Musk is among those who have already bought a ticket.
The Virgin Group has a controlling interest in more than 400 businesses worldwide.
