Planemaker Boom May Launch Supersonic Air Travel

After completing a successful test flight that resulted in no audible sonic boom, aviation company Boom Supersonic hopes to be the first airline to offer domestic supersonic travel.

Why It Flies: Commercial supersonic air travel has been dormant since the Concorde was grounded in 2003, so Boom’s adoption by airlines could result in more flights per day as travel becomes quicker (it can get you from coast to coast 90 minutes faster). That would lead to a major revenue boost for airlines and shorter commute times for passengers… but a potential strain on Air Traffic Control, which will now contend with more planes per day.

Behind the Trips: Boom Supersonic not only successfully flew above Mach 1 (767 mph) but also became the first American company to do so and the first to achieve it without producing a sonic boom that could be heard on the ground.

That’s a major achievement in aviation.

• The Concorde, which was in operation for 27 years, was only allowed to fly supersonic over water because of its sonic boom that could disturb people on the ground and even damage buildings.
• But Boom figured out a way to get rid of the audible boom on the ground — just fly higher. 
• That’s made possible by the company’s proprietary “Boomless Cruise” tech, which lets the plane break the sound barrier at a high enough altitude where sound waves literally U-turn before they get close to the ground (a phenomenon known as “Mach cutoff”).
• Additionally, the tech has an algorithm that allows the company to pinpoint the exact conditions (weather, altitude, speed) needed to achieve “silent” supersonic travel.
• Boom confirmed the tech works by placing microphones along the flight path of its prototype plane, which broke the sound barrier over the Mojave Desert last month.

Final Destination: Boom’s airliner, dubbed “Overture,” will be able to make coast-to-coast US flights 90 minutes faster than typical commercial flights, according to CEO Blake Scholl. Despite interest from airlines like United and American, Scholl lamented on X that he can’t roll out the service just yet because of current regulations. That caught the attention of Elon Musk, who declared, “This administration will get rid of all regulations that make no sense, like this one.” We wouldn’t be surprised if that assertion speeds up Boom orders.