Test Flight Could Herald Return of Supersonic Travel
Boom Supersonic‘s XB-1 aircraft is set to break the sound barrier on Tuesday, January 28, marking the return of supersonic flight testing for passenger travel.
The supersonic test flight follows a successful series of trials at California’s Mojave Air & Space Port, where Chief Test Pilot Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenburg flew the aircraft to Mach 0.95 on January 10, nearly the speed of sound. This test proved the aircraft’s structural integrity under intense pressure, clearing the way for the upcoming supersonic attempt.
The XB-1’s push to Mach 1 leads directly to the development of Boom’s commercial airliner, Overture. The company plans to use data and experience from the test program to build this larger passenger aircraft, scheduled to enter service in the 2030s.
The testing program mirrors SpaceX’s development approach, which uses a demonstrator to perfect the technology before scaling up. Boom has completed 11 test flights in less than a year, gradually increasing speed and testing the aircraft’s performance at various altitudes and pressures before attempting supersonic flight.
Overture plans to revolutionize transatlantic travel by flying up to 80 passengers between London and Newark in just three and a half hours. This would restore supersonic commercial service, absent since Concorde’s final flight two decades ago.
Blake Scholl, the company’s founder and CEO revealed on X that the company has received pre-orders from United Airlines, American Airlines, and Japan Airlines, securing the first five years of production. If successful, the XB-1 would also be the first American-made civilian supersonic jet.
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