Spaceport locals say rocket launch by billionaire Richard Branson boosted their farming community and put the area on the map

• Cornwall locals said they need billionaires like Richard Branson to launch rockets in the area.
• The launch would inject money into the farming county and prevent a brain drain of youth, they said.

Residents living around the spaceport where Virgin Orbit attempted, but failed, to blast off a rocket have welcomed Richard Branson's launch with open arms.

Despite the downpours, strong winds, and cold temperatures, around 2,500 spectators turned up at Spaceport Cornwall in southern England to watch Virgin's Cosmic Girl, a repurposed Boeing 747, fly a LauncherOne rocket into the night sky. However, the rocket failure, caused by an "anomaly," hasn't dampened the spirits of the Cornish locals.

Insider attended the event in Cornwall and spoke to people watching the rocket launch. Doors opened to the public from 7 pm GMT, around 2 pm ET, when people started to flock in with foldable chairs, blankets, and cameras.

Sue and Paul Nuttall, who were looking to retire soon, told Insider that Virgin Orbit's launch was needed to put Cornwall, a farming county, on the map. Cornwall has a brain drain of younger people, leaving the area with "nothing" and the county can't solely rely on farming anymore, Sue said.

"We need big investors like Branson who are big billionaires with private cash and the connections," said Sue, who could see the spaceport runway from her backyard.

They said their eldest daughter who was in the science sector had to leave Cornwall for her career, which Sue added was "heartbreaking" because "you aren't keeping their skills in their postcode."

Other locals echoed the Nuttall's comments.

Emma and her 10-year-old son, Seth, had bagged front-row seats in a designated viewing area across the runway from Cosmic Girl and the spaceport hangar. They only traveled around 15 minutes to get to the spaceport, but Emma described Virgin Orbit's launch as a "once in a lifetime" event that she wanted to bring Seth to.

Seth, who got an International Space Station toy for Christmas, told Insider: "I've been telling all my friends I'm going today and they wouldn't believe me."

Hosting Virgin Orbit's launch will hopefully keep children like Seth who are interested in space in Cornwall, Emma said.

Josh French, an 18-year-old student who had set up his camera about four rows back, said he decided to stay in Cornwall, instead of moving 200 miles away to London, because of the growing amount of opportunities on offer in the county's space sector.

"Seeing something finally in Cornwall, in your own home, it's great," French said. "It's bringing people down to a place that has been quite neglected."

Meanwhile, Joanna and Amy, two architecture students from Falmouth University who only gave their first names, thought the event felt like a mini-festival with a silent disco, food trucks, and blaring music.

With the help of the spaceport and companies like Virgin Orbit, Cornwall can "make space its own thing" and "liven up the economy again," Joanna said.

"I think Cornwall doesn't really have a lot anymore. It's nice to have something other than farmers," Amy said.

Virgin Orbit's mission was set to be the UK's first orbital space launch from UK soil. After the announcement of the rocket failure, an investigation has begun into what happened.

In a press conference on Sunday, Melissa Thorpe, head of Spaceport Cornwall, said she hopes residents feel proud of Cornwall "going to the stars."