'Experience of a lifetime': Billionaire Branson achieves space dream

British billionaire Richard Branson calls his trip to the edge of space the "experience of a lifetime"

Billionaire Richard Branson took off for the edge of space -- here, the spaceship Unity separates from the carrier plane

British billionaire Richard Branson flew into space Sunday aboard a Virgin Galactic vessel, a voyage he described as the "experience of a lifetime" -- and one he hopes will usher in an era of lucrative space tourism.

"Congratulations to all our wonderful team at Virgin Galactic for 17 years of hard, hard work to get us this far," Branson said during an intermittent live feed as Unity descended, calling it the "experience of a lifetime."