The company Boom Supersonic wants to return supersonic passenger aircraft (SST) to the cloud after Concorde ceased operations in 2003. Since the project was announced in 2016, Boom Supersonic has built a small-scale prototype aircraft as well as the Overture aircraft design capable of carrying up to 40 passengers.
At the Farnborough Airshow taking place in the UK this week, the new design of the Overture was shown with a dramatic increase in size. Overture can now carry up to 80 passengers and now uses four engines instead of just two before.
At a glance the Overture is similar to the Boeing 2707 SST aircraft that was discontinued in 1971. The aircraft aims for a maximum speed of Mach 1.7 when moving in unpopulated areas and Mach 0.94 in populated areas with a flight distance of up to 4,250 nautical miles.
Also announced by Boom Supersonic is a collaboration with Northrop Grumman to produce a variant for special military purposes. This version will offer immediate logistical capabilities to areas of conflict for example when needed.
Boom Supersonic aims to start construction of the Overture in 2024 with the first test flight in 2026 and start carrying passengers by 2029. So far only United Airlines has placed an order for 50 passenger planes.