Supersonic and Hypersonic Jets

Supersonic passenger jets may be returning to the air in the near future, and even faster hypersonic planes are also being designed. These initiatives will revive the days of the Concorde when British Airways and Air France offered super fast transatlantic flights aboard that supersonic jet. Those flights stopped in 2003 due to increasing costs and poor fuel efficiency. But a new supersonic jet called ‘Overture’ is being developed by Boom aerospace, and it is designed to be much more efficient and sustainable. United Airlines has already ordered 15 of these 88 seat airplanes which will first fly in 2026.
 
The Overture would cut flight time in half compared to a conventional airliner. With a top speed of Mach 1.7, or about 2,100 kph, a flight from New York to London would take just 3.5 hours. That certainly sounds fast, but it pales in comparison to the futuristic hypersonic passenger aircraft that is being developed by the Hermeus company in the US. This airplane named ‘Quarterhorse’ is designed to travel with a projected top speed of Mach 5.5 or 6,800 kph, and a New York to London flight would take less than an hour! The company plans to test a small-scale version in 2023, a mid-size cargo plane in 2025, and a larger commercial passenger version in 2029.