BRANSON BLASTS OFF
`Dawn of a new space age'
Sir Richard Branson became the first person to fly into space in his own spaceship Sunday, beating rival billionaire Jeff Bezos by just days in what he called “the dawn of a new space age.”
The British entrepreneur touched down safely in New Mexico after a hair-raising flight with his company Virgin Galactic that briefly took him and three fellow passengers beyond the reach of Earth's gravity.
The spacecraft, called the VSS Unity, detached from a carrier airplane at 50,000 feet and fired a hybrid rocket engine to blast up to 85,000 feet, above what the United States defines as the edge of space.
It was a landmark moment for Virgin Galactic's 17-year attempt to make commercial space tourism a reality, giving future customers a demonstration that its vehicle works after previously suffering fatal accidents.
It was also a blow to Bezos, the founder of Amazon and the world's richest person, who has scheduled his own launch with his space company Blue Origin for July 20.
In a ceremony after landing, Branson, 70, accepted a pair of astronaut's wings and hailed his flight as “the experience of a lifetime.”
He said: “What a day, what a day. I think like most kids I have dreamt of this moment since I was a kid, and honestly nothing can prepare you for the view of Earth from space.
“Suddenly you're looking down and seeing people looking up at you — hang on, what are you doing down there? I'm just taking it all in, it's unreal ...
“My mission was to turn the dream of space travel into a reality for my grandchildren, for your grandchildren, for many people who are alive today, for everybody. And having flown to space, I have seen how Virgin Galactic is the space line for Earth. We're here to make space accessible to all, and we want to turn the next generation of dreamers into the astronauts of today and tomorrow.”
Starting at 4 a.m. local time, about 500 people gathered at a spaceport near the town of Truth or Consequences to see the launch. Space industry executives, future customers and other well-wishers were on hand for the festive gathering, which was livestreamed in a presentation hosted by latenight television comedian Stephen Colbert. Among those present was fellow billionaire and space industry pioneer Elon Musk, who also is founder of electric carmaker Tesla Inc.
Grammy-nominated R&B singer Khalid took the stage after the flight to perform his forthcoming single New Normal.
The mother ship, named Eve after Branson's mother, took off quietly and without much ceremony, save for silence from the crowd as it accelerated and cheers when it left the ground.
But when Unity detached from Eve and began its rocket burn, it was easily visible from the ground as a sudden streak of white smoke climbing rapidly into the deep sky. Sir Richard attempted to address the crowd from space, but the audio link broke.
Then Unity's “feathering” stage — in which its twin tails swing upward from the craft's body at a 60 degree angle to create drag and help it drift down to Earth — deployed safely, avoiding a replay of the 2014 accident that tore its sister ship Enterprise into pieces.
After a brief glide back to Earth, Unity rolled to a stop and Sir Richard alighted to hug and kiss his wife and children. The journey after detaching from Eve took less than 15 minutes.
Bezos issued a catty salute on Instagram, saying: “Congratulations on the flight. Can't wait to join the club!” Blue Origin had previously blasted Virgin for only breaking the U.s.-defined boundary of space, which is lower than many other countries', claiming that Branson would have “an asterisk next to (his) name” on any list of real astronauts.
With his “Willy Wonka hat on,” the British tycoon also announced a competition to win two seats on a Virgin Galactic flight next year. A winner will be announced in September.