Boom XB-1: Civilian test aircraft reaches supersonic speed
The Boom XB-1 civil supersonic aircraft has broken the sound barrier for the first time. Boom Supersonic is already planning its next supersonic aircraft project
The Boom XB-1 after its first supersonic flight. The escort aircraft can be seen in the background.
(Image: Boom Supersonic (Screenshot))
The Boom XB-1 single-seat supersonic aircraft developed by US civil aircraft manufacturer Boom Supersonic broke the sound barrier for the first time on Tuesday during a test flight over the Mojave Desert in the US state of California. This makes the jet the first civilian supersonic aircraft in the USA.
The aircraft took off at around 8.00 a.m. (local time) and then flew two turns to climb to 35,000 feet, approximately 10.7 km. The XB-1 then flew a long straight line and reached a speed of Mach 1.1 before breaking the sound barrier with an audible bang. After a circular flight, the aircraft touched down and landed safely on the ground.
The Boom XB-1 was piloted by the chief pilot of Boom Supersonic, Tristan Brandenburg. During the test flight, he was only allowed to use a limited airspace in which the aircraft was allowed to move and for which it is approved. During the flight, it was accompanied by a Northrop T-38, a military jet used by the US military for training purposes, which can also reach supersonic speeds. The T-38 provided images during the flight. The live images were realized via a Starlink satellite broadband transmission. To this end, the engineers installed a Starlink antenna in the tail of the escort aircraft.
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Supersonic passenger aircraft planned
The XB-1 is currently only a demonstration aircraft for supersonic flight. Based on the results of the XB-1, Boom Supersonic is planning to launch a passenger aircraft for supersonic flights. This aircraft, known as the Overture, will be able to fly significantly faster and fly at more than 1.7 Mach over water. Over land, however, the speed is to be reduced to 0.94 Mach to avoid the loud sonic boom when breaking the sound barrier. The Overture will be able to transport up to 80 passengers.
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The aim is to be able to cover longer civilian flight distances in a shorter time, as the Concorde passenger aircraft did for transatlantic flights. The Concorde reached a speed of up to 2.23 Mach (2405 km/h) at an altitude of around 60,000 feet. Developed as a joint project between Air France and British Airways, the aircraft was used in commercial flights from 1976 to 2003. However, a Concorde crashed after take-off at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport in France in 2000 and its uneconomical operation led to the aircraft being taken out of service in 2003.
(olb)
