This was published 8 years ago
Virgin Australia new Brisbane Airport lounge opened by Richard Branson
Virgin Australia's new Brisbane lounge.
Virgin founder Richard Branson would love to open a space facility in Queensland but won't predict when he'll be taking off into the galaxy.
The British entrepreneur also spoke about jet fuel and the falling Aussie dollar's impact on tourism as he officially opened Virgin's new facilities at Brisbane Domestic Airport.
Fresh off a Virgin flight from Sydney, Sir Richard walked a mini red carpet to the opening where he joined Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and the company's chief customer officer Mark Hassell to unveil the Virgin Australia lounge and terminal upgrades.
He began by joking that he didn't know how Ms Palaszczuk got elected with a "surname like that".
Cheekily, he even called the premier a girl.
"I'm old enough to be able to call women girls," he said when pulled up on it.
The entry to Virgin Australia's new Brisbane lounge.
Sir Richard said Queensland had always felt like a second home to him and he was just waiting for an invitation from the premier to open a space facility in the state.
"I hope one day the premier will send me a letter of invitation and we would be delighted to have a discussion about it," he said.
But the commercial space operation, Virgin Galactic, may be some way off.
Virgin Australia's new Brisbane lounge.
"I would love to see it in my lifetime, definitely it will happen in my children's lifetime," Sir Richard said.
When asked when he was taking his first flight into space, Sir Richard said he didn't want to give a date as he'd made that mistake before.
Sir Richard also talked about turning sugar cane into jet fuel and predicted the plummeting Aussie dollar would lead to a surge in international tourists, particularly in Queensland.
Sir Richard Branson celebrates opening the new Virgin Australia lounge with Qld Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.Credit: Tony Moore
However he dodged a question about whether a second international airport was needed in Queensland, referring it to the premier.
Ms Palaszczuk said Virgin's latest upgrades were a further sign of the company's firm commitment in Queensland. This began 15 years ago with Virgin Blue's first Australian flight - from Brisbane to Sydney.
It comes after rival Qantas last month announced it would build a new domestic airport lounge and renovate its existing international lounge in Brisbane.
Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletter
Get exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now.