How Many Private Jets Does Richard Branson Own?

Back in October 2024, an article was published on the private jet collection owned by Sir Richard Branson, owner of the Virgin mega-brand. It was explored in the article that the billionaire owned two Dassault Falcon

private jets; the 50EX, the first of which flew in 1996, and the 900EX, which entered service in the same year. As a follow-up, and slight correction to that article, this piece will confirm which private jets Branson currently owns, and takes a deeper look at his history of private jet ownership.

Photo: John Coates | Airport-Data.com

Sir Richard Branson’s history with Dassault

It turns out that Branson does not, in fact, currently own multiple Dassault Falcon private jets. Rather, the jet he currently owns, and the latest in his string of Falcons, is a 7X with the tail number M-GGAL, pictured above. Branson has owned a total of three Dassault Falcons, but two of those have since changed hands, according to Airport-Data, and corroborated by SuperyachtFan.

To provide a more comprehensive look at Branson’s full list of private Falcons and what became of them, their models and designations are listed below in order of age, the ‘youngest’ jet first:

Dassault Falcon 7X: Tail number M-GGAL. Built in 2012, this jet is currently owned by Branson, and still registered under private ownership with this designation.
Dassault Falcon 900EX: Tail number G-GALX. This jet was built in 2006, and registered under this designation on July 13th, 2006. It was then sold and deregistered on July 12th, 2012. Currently, it is registered TVPX Aircraft Solutions Incorporated, in Utah.
Dassault Falcon 50EX: Tail number M-VGIN. This jet was built in 2001, and registered under this designation on September 29th, 2012. It has since been sold and deregistered, and since July 18th, 2017, it has been owned by Sky Helicopters Incorporated, Texas.

Richard Branson's G-GALX Falcon 900EX EASy

Photo: Ray Barber | Airport-Data.com

From a layperson’s reading these jets’ registration records, it does appear that the oldest 50EX was owned by Branson at the same time as the newest 7X, which he still owns, meaning that he did indeed own multiple Dassault Falcons between 2012 and 2017. Unless there are other Branson-owned private jets before the ones listed, the first one he owned outright was the 900EX, which served between 2006 and 2012.

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The Falcon 7X, 50EX, and 900EX compared

With all three of these Falcon variants having three engines and being suitable for long-range executive travel, what is it that made these jets the choice of the globetrotting billionaire? Sir Richard Branson is no stranger to the aviation industry, having founded Virgin Atlantic

Airways, and later making efforts to bring about commercial passenger travel via Virgin Galactic, as discussed in a BJTOnline interview. A brief overview of the three Falcons and their specifications follows:

The Falcon 7X is the second largest of all Falcon private jets designed thus far. After being developed from the Falcon 900, the7X was introduced in June 2007 and is still being manufactured today. The Falcon 7X, the extended-range 8X, and the 900 are the only three-engine jets still in production as of this year. As of 2020, 289 have been built thus far.
The Falcon 900EX EASy first saw service as the 900, which took its first flight in September 1984. After a longer-range variant, the 900B, was introduced in 1991, the 900EX replaced this variant, entering service in 1996. The plane would later be developed into the 900EX EASy, produced from 2004 to 2009, and eventually the 900LX, which is the current production model. Since the 900’s introduction, it has featured multiple technological upgrades and aerodynamic tweaks, but its overall design has changed remarkably little. Between variations, over 500 have been built so far.
The Falcon 50EX is the oldest on this list, and the progenitor of the other two jets, its introduction dating all the way back to November 1976, when it debuted as the super-midsize Falcon 50. Loosely based on the even older Falcon 20, this jet was a clean sheet design that featured an original wing. The Falcon 50EX features improved engines and other enhancements to give further range increases, and was manufactured from 1996 to 2008. Between both versions, 352 were built.

Richard Branson's FALCON 50EX — Photo: Terry Fletcher | Airport-Data.com

Specifications of these Falcon models

Aircraft	Falcon 7X	Falcon 900EX EASy	Falcon 50EX
Max Seats	12 to 16	12 to 19	10 to 11
Max Range	5,950 nmi	4,725 nmi	3,075 nmi
Ceiling	51,000 ft	51,000 ft	49,000 ft
Length	76 ft 8 in	66 ft 4 in	60 ft 9 in
Cabin Section	6 ft 2 in high, 7 ft 8 in wide, 39 ft 1 in long	6 ft 1 in high, 7 ft 8 in wide, 33 ft 2 in long	5 ft 9 in high, 6 ft 1 in wide, 22 ft 11 in long
Fuel Capacity	31,940 lbs	21,000 lbs	15,520 lbs
Takeoff Distance	5,710 ft	5,215 ft	4,934 ft
Power Plant	3x P&WC PW307A engines (6,402 lbf thrust each)	3x TFE731-60 engines (5,000 lbf thrust each)	3x DEEC controlled TFE 731-40 engines (3,700 lbf thrust each)
Avionics	Falcon Enhanced Avionics System (EASy) Flight Deck	Honeywell / Dassault Primus Epic EASy avionics	Collins Pro Line 4 avionics suite

Additional data from GlobalAir.

As shown by the reduced number of seats on the 7X compared to the 900EX, the more modern business jets are more executive than passenger-oriented in terms of configuration. However, the 7X is a much larger plane than the 50EX, meaning that while Branson owned both, he had two jets that could be used for different purposes, the 7X being suitable for trips to Europe and Asia from his home base in the UK, and the 50EX being more suitable for shorter trips.

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How Sir Richard Branson made his millions

Sir Richard Branson first started the Virgin company in 1970, so named because he and his staff were so new to the world of business. The company began as a mail order service, selling records, but soon blossomed into the independent record label, Virgin Records. Two years later, Virgin Records was the biggest independent record label in the world, featuring the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols and Phil Collins, among many others.

Photo: John Coates | Airport-Data.com

In 1984, Branson founded Virgin Atlantic Airways, the first of many travel-related Virgin companies. As of 2021, he is still pursuing his vision of establishing a commercial space travel solution with the Virgin Galactic venture, the name of which played a part in the naming of his 900EX and 7X jets.

For a more detailed examination of how Virgin Atlantic became a global airline, read this article from August 2024.

In July of that year, Branson flew more than 50 miles above the New Mexico desert on the Virgin Galactic rocket plane VSS Unity, in the vehicle’s first fully crewed test flight to space. The flight had been in the works for more than 17 years, and represented a major milestone for the project.

Space flight aside, Branson now has more than 11.5 million followers across online social networks, and spends a lot of time as a daredevil adventurer. He holds records for the fastest Atlantic Ocean boat crossing and hot-air ballooning across two oceans. He has written six books, and was knighted by then Prince Charles in 2000.

The Virgin Galactic passenger rocket plane VSS Unity

Photo: Steve Mann | Shutterstock

A closer look at the Dassault Falcon 7X

So then, what can be said about Sir Richard Branson’s private jet of choice? Looking at an example available for charter via Clay Lacy, which has an interior finished in 2023. The plane comes with the following creature comforts and modern amenities:

11 seats, convertible to five beds
Two lavatories, the aft having a full vanity
SatCom Direct Wi-Fi with streaming speeds
HD monitors and an airshow moving map
Cabin environment controls
Power outlets & USB-C charging
Kitchen featuring microwave, oven, galley sink, and coffee-making facility
Easy in-flight access to the baggage compartment

With its long range, it makes a great plane for transcontinental or transatlantic travel. It can reach a cruising speed of 0.80 Mach, boasting a fuel consumption of up to 30 percent lower than other jets in its class. Plenty of light is provided by the 28 large windows, and the high-tech cabin management system, with multiple control points, allows passengers to set an appropriate mood for their time of travel.

How much is it to purchase one today?

While the video below may quote the new price of the Falcon 7X as being around $60 million, an article published in March shows the most recent price as closer to $55 million. As the newer 8X exists, pre-owned prices of the jet have begun to fall, ranging from $15 million to $48 million, with the earliest 2007 models being the cheapest.

That said, purchasing an aircraft like this comes with many additional costs, as shown by an annual sample budget on LibertyJet. By their estimates, flying the 7X for 200 hours per year can cost $1,434,621 annually, while flying for 400 hours per year can cost $2,214,097. While this may be lower than many other jets of its size, thanks to its modern and very economical engines, maybe it is best to leave the high-flying to Sir Richard Branson.

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