We’re one step closer to being able to fly from Vancouver to Tokyo in 6 hours — barely enough time to get through two in-flight movies (or one recent Scorcese flick).
What happened: Boom, an aviation startup building supersonic commercial jets, completed the first test flight of its prototype aircraft, the XB-1.
- While Boom says the XB-1 is capable of flying at supersonic speeds, it only flew for 12 minutes at 274 mph for the test.
- Boom says the development of the prototype has helped it design software and materials that will be used in its flagship aircraft, the Overture, which it aims to fly by 2030.
Why it matters: Boom’s supersonic jets — which will be designed to fly at twice the speed of today’s passenger planes — would represent the biggest innovation in air travel since the Concorde’s last flight in 2003.
- Boom says the Overture aircraft will be able to fly more than 600 existing routes in half the time they currently take at fares comparable to current business class tickets.
- The aircraft startup does have some early validation in the form of pre-orders (with non-refundable deposits) for 130 planes from major airlines like United, American Airlines, and Japan Airlines.
Yes, but: Skeptics say Boom is likely to suffer from the same issues that have doomed past efforts at supersonic aviation, like the Concorde.
- The high ticket price point required to make supersonic travel profitable will likely limit the number of routes the planes can be used on to those dominated by business travellers rather than tourists.
- Meanwhile, the steady improvement of in-flight WiFi has made it possible to for those same business flyers to work while in the air, reducing the incentive to opt for a faster but more expensive option.
What’s next: Boom has raised US$700 million so far but says it will cost around US$8 billion to build the Overture — in other words, it still has a ways to go to resurrect supersonic commercial flight.—TS