Swashbuckling billionaire Richard Branson hurtled into space aboard his own winged rocket ship Sunday, bringing Astro-tourism a step closer to reality and beating out his exceedingly richer rival Jeff Bezos. Pictured here: Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson carries crew member Sirisha Bandla on his shoulders while celebrating their flight to space at Spaceport America near Truth or Consequences. (Image: AP)
The nearly 71-year-old Branson and five crewmates from his Virgin Galactic space-tourism company reached an altitude of 53.5 miles (86 kilometres) over the New Mexico desert — enough to experience three to four minutes of weightlessness and witness the curvature of the Earth — and then glided back home to a runway landing. (Image: AP)
The rocket plane carrying Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson and other crew members take off from Spaceport America near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. The brief, up-and-down flight — the space plane's portion took only about 15 minutes, or about as long as Alan Shepard's first U.S. spaceflight in 1961 — was a splashy and unabashedly commercial plug for Virgin Galactic, which plans to start taking paying customers on joyrides next year. (Image: AP)
In this photo provided by Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson, bottom centre, and his crew members experience zero gravity aboard his winged rocket ship on Sunday. (Image: AP)
Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson, left, receives a Virgin Galactic made astronaut wings pin from Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield after his flight to space from Spaceport America. (Image: AP)
Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson, left, sprays champagne to his crew members while celebrating their flight to space. (Image: AP)
Branson became the first person to blast off in his own spaceship, beating Bezos, the richest person on the planet, by nine days. He also became the second septuagenarian to go into space. Astronaut John Glenn flew on the shuttle at age 77 in 1998. (Image: AP)
Richard Branson, right, answers questions while crewmates Sirisha Bandla and Colin Bennett listen during a news conference at Spaceport America near Truth or Consequences, N.M., on Sunday, July 11, 2021. Branson and the crew from his Virgin Galactic space tourism company reached an altitude of about 53 miles (88 kilometers) over the New Mexico desert before safely gliding back home to a runway landing at Spaceport America. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)