Boom’s XB-1 supersonic jet has received approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to fly even faster in the skies over California. According to information from Engadget, the test model will now be able to go beyond Mach 1, in an attempt to break the speed of sound in the air — which means exceeding 1224 km/h.
What do you need to know:
- Testing is scheduled to take place later this year at Mojave Air & Space Port, California;
- The objective is to prove the viability of the project in areas such as fuel consumption, speeds and flight characteristics;
- The approval comes after a successful first maiden test flight. The supersonic plane reached an altitude of 2,170 meters and speeds of up to 440 km/h at the time, in March.
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After the successful first flight of the XB-1, I am looking forward to its historic first supersonic flight. We thank the Federal Aviation Administration for supporting innovation and allowing the XB-1 to continue its important role in informing the future of supersonic travel.
Blake Scholl, founder and CEO of Boom Supersonic.
Boom’s plan is to carry out 10 to 20 flights before trying to break the speed of sound — which should only happen at the end of the year. According to the company, the intention with the tests is to confirm performance and handling qualities while carrying out in-flight checks of all systems and demonstrating a safe margin for vibration limits.
Test pilot Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenberg will be in charge during the first supersonic flight.
At the moment, the plan is several supersonic flights. We plan to do Mach 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3 in the first three. The reason for this is that each of these points takes up so much air space that you only have time to make one of them, so we will be in these conditions for several minutes, we will have a blockage of flying qualities and handling qualities, and we will still have to return to House.
Tristan Geppetto Brandenberg, XB-1 test pilot.
It’s worth remembering that the XB-1 is a scaled-down version of Boom’s ultimate goal: a commercial jet called Overture that should carry up to 100 “business class” passengers. According to the company, the plane will be able to fly from Tokyo to Seattle in four and a half hours. The project, however, is still far from reaching the factories.
