supersonic passenger air travel is being worked on by a Colorado based company. Both American Airlines and United Airlines have placed orders for the Boom Overture, which is supposed to be the new Concorde.
Things are not looking good for this to happen.
The final production design of the jet will be rolled out by 2025. and the jet will enter passenger service in 2029. It is kind of a major detail for any plane, let alone a supersonic plane, that the engines Boom would use for the Overture are.
The partnership between Boom and Rolls-Royce was launched in 2020 to advance the Boom Overture's engine program design.
Rolls-Royce is no longer interested in this concept. Rolls-Royce won't work on the Boom Overture. A Rolls-Royce spokesman had a statement.
“We’ve completed our contract with Boom and delivered various engineering studies for their Overture supersonic program. After careful consideration, Rolls-Royce has determined that the commercial aviation supersonic market is not currently a priority for us and, therefore, will not pursue further work on the program at this time. It has been a pleasure to work with the Boom tea and we wish them every success in the future.”
People call me out for my skepticism about the Boom Overture concept. Let me explain how it's fair. I love the idea, but I have a hard time taking it seriously.
The plane could fly passengers by 2029. Seven years from now, that's it. The plane's design was completely reworked just a few months ago. The design changed from three engines to four, and the plane's speed was reduced from Mach 2.1 to Mach 1.7.
While Boom was working with Rolls-Royce, there was no indication that the two companies had an agreement for an engine.
The timelines seems very unrealistic to me, and that made me question the feasibility of this. A plane based on an existing concept has experienced a delay of roughly five years.
In seven years, we are supposed to have a supersonic plane. I don't think that's going to happen.
I think there is no need for supersonic travel anymore. The prime market for a supersonic jet would be New York to London. In the past, airlines didn't have wi-fi and didn't have flat beds in business class, so time on planes was wasted.
You can book a business class seat with a door and stay connected to the internet on the flight. How would the flights from New York to London be timed?
If there is a curfew from 11:30PM until 6AM, how would that work? I'm not sure how that's better for the average traveler than just booking an overnight flight in a flat bed. The plane won't have flat beds so you wouldn't want to book a redeye on it.
There aren't many situations where flying supersonic is better than existing alternatives.
Rolls-Royce is no longer working on an engine. Boom is stuck trying to find an engine manufacturer that can create something that will meet the requirements for supersonic travel.
This plane will not be carrying passengers by 2029.
What do you think about the ties? Do you think the plane will fly passengers around 2029?
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