Sir Richard Branson was born in Guildford, England, on July 18,
1950. Dropping out of school in his teens, he began his career
by starting a national magazine called Student.
In 1970, Branson initiated his Virgin Group of companies, earning
a reputation for audacity and success. In 1984, he established
Virgin Atlantic Airways, a highly competitive air carrier that
has won Britain's Airline-of-the-Year award four times. Branson's
Virgin Express operates Boeings 737s throughout Europe as a
single-class, non-smoking airline, eliminating multiple ticketing
structures with its simplified low-fare operation.
Branson has also engaged in record-setting balloon flights. He and
world-renowned balloonist Per Lindstrand were first to fly the
Atlantic in a hot-air balloon in 1990 and first to fly the Pacific
in 1991. Commercially, Branson's Lightship Group operates internally
illuminated airships for advertising and promotional venues in over
50 countries.
Branson has also applied aviation resources to humanitarian purposes.
During the Gulf War, he used Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747s to supply
refugees and also to evacuate foreign nationals from Baghdad. In
1997, Virgin took over London's emergency helicopter service, leasing
the helicopter back to the city for free. Richard Branson was knighted
by Queen Elizabeth the Second on March 30, 2000.
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