‘New space age’: Hear what Branson said after his historic space flight

SPACEPORT AMERICA, New Mexico -- Richard Branson became the first person to ride into space aboard a rocket he helped fund. The supersonic space plane developed by his company, Virgin Galactic, roared into the sky over southern New Mexico Sunday morning, carrying Branson and three fellow crewmembers.

Branson successfully returned to earth aboard Virgin's rocket-powered plane, making him the first billionaire to travel to space aboard a spacecraft he helped fund in a landmark moment for the commercial space industry.

Branson spoke after his historic trip to space aboard the rocket-powered VSS Unity. He recounted the spaceflight by calling it "indescribably beautiful" and and marked the success by proclaiming: "Welcome to the dawn of a new space age."

Branson said, during a news conference following the flight, that his mission is to "make space more accessible to all."

"We're here to make space more accessible to all. We want to turn the next generation of dreamers into the astronauts of today and tomorrow. We've all us on this stage have had the most extraordinary experience, and we'd love it if a number of you can have it, too," he said. "If you ever had a dream, now is the time to make it come true. I'd like to end by saying welcome to the dawn of a new space age."

Hear what else Branson had to say about the flight by watching his remarks in the video player at the top of this article.