Richard Branson calls his upcoming flight ‘pinch-me moment’ | Business and Economic Affairs
Branson says his children enjoyed him when his wife told him, ‘You can, but I won’t go to your funeral’.
As Virgin Galactic finalizes plans for founder Richard Branson to join five others on a pilot tour at the end of the site on July 11, a British billionaire said his wife might have been scared by the opening but she too was not intimidated.
“I’ve been expecting this for 17 years,” Branson said in an interview Tuesday from Spaceport America near the remote town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico.
He also said that preparations for the flight only add to the excitement ahead of preparations for Sunday, which will take place one week before the age of 71.
“Everything about this is a moment,” he said.
The launch of VSS Unity’s Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc rocket aircraft in the desert will mark the company’s fourth pilot project beyond the earth’s atmosphere. But it will be the first to carry enough passengers, made by Branson, two pilots and three mission specialists.
One is set up at an altitude of about 15,240 meters (15,240 meters) from the Virgin Galactic aircraft carrier, then flying over its rocket into the airspace, where crews experience a 4-minute decline before landing on Earth.
Environmental hazards
The trip is free of the dangers of flying in the air. The first image of a rocket plane crashed during a 2014 pilot tour of the Mojave Desert in California, killing one pilot and injuring another.
Asked how his family responded last week to joining the group on Sunday, Branson said his children – who wanted to know more like him – were happy, but also said his wife, Joan, his assistant, was smart.
“My wife is a person who would be intimidated by a Virgin Atlantic plane,” he said. “He is the last person who would want to do that. But he has known me ever since I tried to make balloons across the Atlantic or the Pacific or around the world, and he seems to still love us. ”
He laughed as he quoted his wife as telling him: “‘If you are too stupid to do these wonderful things, you can do it, but I will not go to your funeral.’”
Ignore Bezos
By taking part in the flight on July 11, Branson set himself up to strike businessman Jeff Bezos in the air for nine days.
Bezos, founder of Amazon.com Inc., will be aboard the New Shepard airliner of his rocket company, Blue Origin, on July 20.
Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin, along with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, are competing for the title on the emerging market.
Branson denied that he and Bezos were in contention to see who could ride first, however.
“I’m just telling her and the people who are going with her all the best. I’m looking forward to talking to him about his trip when he comes back, “Branson said of Bezos.” I talked to him two or three weeks ago, and we all wished each other well. “
Succeeding at all of these businesses is considered important in promoting a growing business that aims to make tourism more attractive, especially for high-income customers.
Virgin has stated that two more car trips are in preparation for the company’s pre-commencement of commercial operations in 2022, and Branson said he hopes to offer paid “regular” tours next year.
He also said he was confident that there was a lot of space in the market for his company and Bezos to compete.
“None of us can afford to build enough spacecraft to achieve this,” Branson said.
