Sir Richard Branson’s Private Jet

by Grant Martin on

Ever wonder what it’s like to be rich and famous and have your own private jet? Well, it looks a lot like this. Passing through the Mojave Desert airport last week, Gadling spotted Richard Branson’s Falcon 900EX, the French made, long range, ultra luxe corporate jet.

Sporting a blown up decal of Branson’s iris on the tail fin (the same, minus additional artistic work, done for Virgin Galactic), this jet has a maximum cruising altitude of 36,000 feet, speed of mach 0.87 (662 mph) and in its factory configuration can seat up to fourteen passengers. One can only imagine what sort of extravagances the Branson family has upgraded the aircraft with though. The range and speed of the aircraft make it perfect for important jetsetting moguls like Branson, who frequently needs to commute from his home United Kingdom to his island in the Caribbean to business in Southern California quickly.

Looking at the exterior of the aircraft, one can see that Sir Branson has clearly created this aircraft as a mobile advertisement for Virgin Galactic. In addition to the similar tail fin markings, the evolving VG aircraft have been stenciled near the cabin door, while the engine markings are G-GALX and the aircraft itself is named Galactic Girl.

Still, quite the improvement over conventional travel. Had Sir Branson not been buried under a phalanx of reporters we would have asked for a tour, but I suppose we’ll have to save that for the next visit out to the desert.

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Top 10 resorts to rent out

by Jerry Guo on

Do you ever spend too much time daydreaming about posh resorts or destinations you could never afford? Whenever’s it’s drizzly or overcast out, I always spend hours surfing those sites about the lives of the rich and famous.

Here’s a good one: the top ten most expensive for-hire resorts. We’re not talking about staying at some ritzy hotel. No, what’s hot these days are renting out entire islands, safari lodges, and Spanish villas. The Colonial style home (scene in the picture), valued at $24 million, can be had for $11,900 a night.

Or how about the original exclusive-use resort, Richard Branson’s Necker Island in the British Virgin Islands. That’ll set you back a cool $47,000 a night.