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SONIC BOOM
Return of supersonic passenger flights
By Jay Menon
oon, there is going to be state-of-the-art technologies to bring supersonic
a change in the way we to enable efficient supersonic
S travel. About 20 years flight including carbon fiber travel to passengers
since supersonic passenger air- composites, advanced avionics, worldwide.”
craft Concorde stopped flying, a digitally-optimized aerodynam-
band of companies are readying ics, and an advanced supersonic
commercial airplanes, capable of propulsion system. The XB-1 was flown by Boom
breaking the sound barrier. Chief Test Pilot Bill “Doc”
The demonstrator took flight
A new era of supersonic flight is in the same hallowed airspace Shoemaker and Test Pilot
on the horizon, and supersonic where the Bell X-1 first broke the Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenburg
travel looks to be on its way sound barrier in 1947. flew the T-38 chase aircraft
back, with major airlines placing which monitored the flight. The
orders for the next generation of XB-1 took off from the Mojave
ultrafast jets. Blake Scholl, founder Air & Space Port and flew in
and CEO of Boom the same airspace that hosted
U.S.based company, Boom, many historic first flights, includ-
which is building the world’s fast- Supersonic, said: “I’ve ing the flights of the Bell X-1,
est airliner, Overture, recently been looking forward the North American X-15, and
announced the successful the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird.
flight of its XB-1 demonstrator, to this flight since According to the pilot the XB-1
the world’s first independently founding Boom in met all of its test objectives,
developed supersonic jet, at including safely and successfully
the Mojave Air & Space Port in 2014, and it marks the achieving an altitude of 7,120
Mojave, California. most significant mile- feet and speeds up to 238 knots
The XB-1 leverages stone yet on our path (273 mph).
26 | MARCH - APRIL 2024 WWW.GBP.COM.SG/AAA
