Supersonic flight is coming back. In the USA, a passenger plane is being created twice as fast as Airbus and Boeing, but the ticket will be very expensive.

American startup Boom Supersonic has conducted the first flight tests of the Overture supersonic passenger aircraft.

Its development began in 2016. This is the first audio-sonic passenger supersonic aircraft, which will replace the Tu-144 and Concorde, which have not flown for a long time.

Despite all the ambition, a startup can face serious problems. However, they do not greatly scare airlines that are already placing pre-orders.

Content:

• 1. Which planes are the fastest?
  2. When did the supersonic aircraft prototype appear?
  3. What are the limitations in supersonic aviation?
  4. How much does the fastest plane in the world cost?
  5. When you’re waiting for a modern supersonic passenger plane

Supersonic planes fly much faster than regular planes

The main advantage of the Overture will be completed at its speed. The maximum speed of the aircraft is Mach 1.7 (2083 km/h). This is slightly less than the Tu-144 and Concorde, but much more than conventional passenger aircraft.

At Mach 1.7, the flight from New York to London will last 3 hours and 30 minutes. This twice as fast as a conventional plane.

The flight from San Francisco to Tokyo across the Pacific Ocean will last 6 hours. A Boeing 777 covers a similar route in 11 hours.

Tu-144 and Concorde became the world’s first and last supersonic passenger aircraft.

But there is another side to the coin in a short trip. The Overture will have 65 seats, of which 30 seats are first class and 15 seats are reserved for business class.

Thus, Overture has not physically learned to move a large number of passengers, like other supersonic aircraft. For comparison, the largest regular passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380, has a capacity of 853 passengers.

Flying on Overture will probably cost more than flying on a regular plane. This is due to the small capacity and high consumption of environmentally friendly aviation fuel (CAF).

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The prototype of a passenger supersonic aircraft took off for the first time in the 21st century

XB-1 prototype.

On March 21, 2024, at 7:28 a.m. local time, the XB-1 supersonic aircraft prototype made its maiden flight in Colorado, lasting 12 minutes. During this time, the plane reached an altitude of 2170 meters and accelerated to 455 km/h.

XB-1 is a prototype of Overture. He presented conditions with 1950s J85 turbojets. The production Overture will be powered by four proprietary Symphony engines, which are currently in development. Boom Supersonic CEO Blake Sholl said each Symphony engine has about three times the combined power of the three J85 engines in the XB-1.

Sholl Criterion XB-1 “One-third scale Overture prototype demonstrator.” It is really three times smaller than the serial Overture.

If your prototype looks exactly like a production aircraft, it means you haven’t learned anything. We learned a lot from the XB-1 during the design, development and production process, which allowed us to improve Overture.

Blake Scholl, CEO of Boom Supersonic

XB-1 also helps to attract investment, because investors promote that work is being done, and the company has the settings for success.

Over the course of a year, the XB-1 underwent a series of 15 test flights that would eventually break the sound barrier.

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Supersonic flights will be carried out with restrictions

Currently, the United States and many other countries prohibit supersonic flights over populated land. This means that Overture will not be able to fly at maximum speed in the United States.

On supersonic Overture you can only go over water. But even in this mode, flights between New York and London or Seattle and Tokyo will be twice as fast.

The second problem associated with SAF environmental fuel: it’s in very short supply now.

SAF is an aviation fuel that is produced without the use of oil or gas. Instead, residual materials of organic origin, such as used edible oil and sugar, can be used.

In 2022, Lufthansa used approximately 13 thousand tons of SAF. This is 0.2% of the required amount of fuel and 5% of the world SAF reserves.

There are also big questions surrounding ticket pricing. Under the Boom Supersonic program, one ticket from New York to London and back will cost $5,000. The same ticket on Concorde today would cost $20 thousand, and this was the only profitable route.

Given fuel shortages and the high cost of aircraft, it is unclear how long airlines will have to reduce investment.

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The development of the aircraft will cost $8 billion

Boom Supersonic has already raised more than $700 million, but Overture’s total development cost was $8 billion and could be higher.

Despite this, the company is already building a Superfactory in North Carolina where it will produce aircraft. Construction is ahead of schedule, so the plant will be ready this summer.

In parallel with the invention of the airplane and the construction of the plant, Boom Supersonic leads the work of other companies in the state.

The Spanish company Aernnova develops the wings for the Overture. They will be shaped for both supersonic and subsonic flight regimes. They will also be the thinner wings of conventional aircraft, allowing for faster flight at high speeds.

Italian aerospace giant Leonardo will design and manufacture structural elements of the fuselage and wing box.

As already mentioned, Boom Supersonic will develop its own jet engines. This decision was made at the end of 2022 after Rolls-Royce, Pratt & Whitney and General Electric refused to develop supersonic engines due to too high costs.

Air carriers seem to believe in Overture’s success. United Airlines ordered 15 aircraft, and American Airlines ordered another 20. In addition, Virgin Atlantic, Japan Airlines, United Airlines, American Airlines and two other unknown customers have options on ordering 171 aircraft.

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Supersonic passenger flights could become a reality

20 years ago Concorde made its last flight. At that point, it seemed like supersonic flight was never coming back for a variety of reasons, including expensive tickets, high fuel consumption, low capacity and unreliability.

But Boom Supersonic is about to completely change this industry. Yes, it will not be able to correct all the shortcomings of the Tu-144 and Concorde, but if there are fewer of them, then this will already be a victory.

Tu-144 and Concorde were created 60 years ago. Since then, the aviation industry has come a long way. Therefore, the dream of supersonic passenger flights is becoming a reality, we just need to wait a little.

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