NASA exploring passenger jet that could fly at four times the speed of sound

New York to London in 90 minutes?

Commercial passenger aeroplanes can complete the transatlantic flight between New York and London in around 7 hours. When the Concorde was around, it could complete the journey in as little as 3 hours. But now, NASA is exploring a case that could cut down that time to nearly 90 minutes.

Larger airliners today cruise at around 965kms per hour, but NASA announced it is investigating the business case for supersonic passenger air travel aircraft that could possibly travel between Mach 2 and Mach 4 (2 469kms and 4 939kms per hour). The study concluded that there could be a market for such a flight in about 50 established flight routes.

The United States and many other countries do not allow supersonic flight over land, so the study focused on transoceanic flights through high-volume regions, especially routes that cross the Pacific Ocean. Parallelly, NASA is exploring designs like its experimental X-59 flight, which could fly at supersonic speeds relatively quietly.

Concept illustration of a Boeing high-supersonic commercial passenger aircraft. Photo Credit: Boeing

“We conducted similar concept studies over a decade ago at Mach 1.6-1.8, and those resulting roadmaps helped guide NASA research efforts since, including those leading to the X-59. These new studies will both refresh those looks at technology roadmaps and identify additional research needs for a broader high-speed range,” said Lori Ozoroski, project manager for NASA’s Commercial Supersonic Technology Project, in a press statement.

The Advanced Air Vehicle Program at NASA is moving into the next phase of high-speed travel research. This will include issuing two 12-month contracts to companies to develop concept designs and technology roadmaps. These roadmaps will explore air travel possibilities while outlining risks and challenges and identifying the technologies that could make this kind of supersonic travel a reality.