On Tuesday, 28 January 2025, aviation enthusiasts watching the amazing Boom Supersonic livestream presentation witnessed the dawn of second-generation, civilian, supersonic operations. With special permission granted by the FAA to fly high above California’s Mojave Desert and across the designated Bell X-1 Supersonic Corridor, Chief Test Pilot Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenburg broke the Mach 1 sound barrier (“went supersonic”) not just once but three times during his 33-minute test flight in the Boom Supersonic XB-1 demonstrator aircraft, registration N990XB.
The XB-1 test flight was a unique event that will live on in the aviation history books. Boasting a beautiful, slender-fuselage designed and built in America, the XB-1 is the very first civilian aircraft to fly supersonic above the United States continental landmass and the first civilian jet to break the Mach 1 sound barrier since the Anglo-French Concorde, which operated supersonic passenger services for British Airways and Air France at Mach 2, from 1976 to 2003.
The company explains that the XB-1 is setting the foundation for the Boom Overture. This will be a second-generation supersonic jet designed to fly over water at Mach 1.7, approximately twice the speed of today’s fastest commercial aircraft.
The proposed flying time from Washington, D.C. to London is approximately four hours, and about three hours from Los Angeles to Honolulu. Billed as being environmentally viable — it will run on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) — Boom Overture will have a range of 4,250 nautical miles (7,871 kilometers) and be built to carry 65 to 80 passengers at Mach 1.7.
After a hiatus of more than 20 years, Concorde loyalists — and all other air travelers — can thrill to the idea of making long-haul flights in about half the time normally taken by subsonic aircraft, enjoying a turbulence-free onboard environment and without the problems of jetlag.
To read the full article, please visit: https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/2025/02/supersonic-xb-1-breaks-sound-barrier/
Source: Runway Girl Network
Great expectations for supersonic travel as XB-1 breaks sound barrier, February 2, 2025, www.runwaygirlnetwork.com
