Boeing says commercial hypersonic jets to be available soon
- 7 years ago
PARIS — The CEO of Boeing said at the Paris Air Show that commercial hypersonic jets will become a reality in the next decade or two, which will drastically cut down current air travel times.
Hypersonic generally refers to speeds of Mach 5 and above, which is faster than supersonic and more than five times faster than transonic speeds. A hypersonic jet can travel from New York to Shanghai in just two hours whereas a conventional commercial flight usually takes about 15 hours.
“I think in the next decade or two you're going to see them become a reality," Boeing Chairman and CEO Dennis Muilenburg told CNBC. “There is still work to do on closing the business case to make sense for our customers.”
Objects travelling at hypersonic speed have to withstand surface temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Celsius, which is high enough to melt aluminium and titanium. Both materials are commonly used in current aircraft construction. Sonic booms created by flying at hypersonic speed would also generate a noise on the ground that can permanently damage human ears.
Another major problem for hypersonic or supersonic flights are the costs. The supersonic passenger jet Concorde was unable to turn a profit for almost 30 years in service. Industry experts remain skeptical about ultra-fast airliners.
“It's hard for me to see, at least in the next 15-20 years, that it's going to be so cost competitive that it's going to compel the airlines to take a stab at it,” John Plueger, president and CEO of AirLease Corp told CNBC.
Hypersonic generally refers to speeds of Mach 5 and above, which is faster than supersonic and more than five times faster than transonic speeds. A hypersonic jet can travel from New York to Shanghai in just two hours whereas a conventional commercial flight usually takes about 15 hours.
“I think in the next decade or two you're going to see them become a reality," Boeing Chairman and CEO Dennis Muilenburg told CNBC. “There is still work to do on closing the business case to make sense for our customers.”
Objects travelling at hypersonic speed have to withstand surface temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Celsius, which is high enough to melt aluminium and titanium. Both materials are commonly used in current aircraft construction. Sonic booms created by flying at hypersonic speed would also generate a noise on the ground that can permanently damage human ears.
Another major problem for hypersonic or supersonic flights are the costs. The supersonic passenger jet Concorde was unable to turn a profit for almost 30 years in service. Industry experts remain skeptical about ultra-fast airliners.
“It's hard for me to see, at least in the next 15-20 years, that it's going to be so cost competitive that it's going to compel the airlines to take a stab at it,” John Plueger, president and CEO of AirLease Corp told CNBC.