Virgin Galactic’s Richard Branson is aiming to beat fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos into space by nine days.

Branson’s company announced on Thur

Richard Branson aims to beat Jeff Bezos into space by nine days

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2021-07-02 08:00:05

Virgin Galactic’s Richard Branson is aiming to beat fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos into space by nine days. Branson’s company announced on Thursday evening that its next test flight will take place on 11 July and that its founder will be among the six people on board. All other passengers are company employees. It will be only the fourth trip to space for Virgin Galactic.

The winged rocket ship – the first carrying a full crew – will launch from New Mexico after the US Federal Aviation Administration gave Virgin permission to take paying customers to space in late June, after a successful test flight in May.

The news came just hours after Bezos’ Blue Origin said Bezos would be accompanied into space on 20 July by Wally Funk, a female aerospace pioneer. Bezos plans to blast into space from West Texas on the 52nd anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. He’ll be on the debut flight of a Blue Origin rocket with his brother, a female aerospace pioneer and the winner of a $28m charity auction. Branson said he was “honoured” to be able to help “ensure his business delivers a unique customer experience”.

“I’ve always been a dreamer. My mum taught me to never give up and to reach for the stars. On July 11, it’s time to turn that dream into a reality aboard the next @VirginGalactic,” he said via Twitter.