Virgin Galactic, the spaceflight company co-founded by Richard Branson, has announced a successful launch of humans into space from New Mexico.

The launch, which took place over the weekend, represents the company’s third spaceflight.

New Mexico has now become the third US state to send astronauts into space.

“Fifteen years ago, New Mexico embarked on a journey to create the world’s first commercial spaceport,’’ said Branson. ‘’Today, we launched the first human spaceflight from that very same place, marking an important milestone for both Virgin Galactic and New Mexico.”

The British billionaire added: “I am proud of the team for their hard work and grateful to the people of New Mexico who have been unwavering in their commitment for commercial spaceflight from day one. Their belief and support have made today’s historic achievement possible.”

“Today’s flight showcased the inherent elegance and safety of our spaceflight system, while marking a major step forward for both Virgin Galactic and human spaceflight in New Mexico,” said Michael Colglazier, chief executive of Virgin Galactic. “Space travel is a bold and adventurous endeavour, and I am incredibly proud of our talented team for making the dream of private space travel a reality. We will immediately begin processing the data gained from this successful test flight, and we look forward to sharing news on our next planned milestone.”

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