NASA exploring flight that could travel from New York to London in just 90 minutes

NASA is exploring the possibilities of a aircraft that can travel between the speeds of Mach 2 and Mach 4, which can cover the distance between New York and London in 90 minutes.

Concept illustration of a Boeing high-supersonic commercial passenger aircraft. (Image credit: Boeing via NASA)

Listen to this article

00:00

1x 1.5x 1.8x

Commercial passenger aeroplanes can complete the transatlantic flight between New York and London in around 7 hours. When the Concorde was around, it could complete the journey in as little as 3 hours. But now, NASA is exploring a case for that could cut down that time to nearly 90 minutes.

Larger airliners today cruise at around 965 kilometres per hour, but NASA announced it is investigating the business case for supersonic passenger air travel aircraft that could possibly travel between Mach 2 and Mach 4 (2469–4939 kilometres per hour). The study concluded that there could be a market for such a flight in about 50 established flight routes.

The United States and many other countries do not allow supersonic flight over land, so the study focused on transoceanic flights through high-volume regions, especially routes that cross the Pacific Ocean. Parallely, NASA is exploring designs like its experimental X-59 flight, which could fly at supersonic speeds relatively quietly.

Story continues below this ad

Also read | Smile, please! ISRO shares image of Chandrayaan-3 lander Vikram captured by Pragyan rover

“We conducted similar concept studies over a decade ago at Mach 1.6-1.8, and those resulting roadmaps helped guide NASA research efforts since, including those leading to the X-59. These new studies will both refresh those looks at technology roadmaps and identify additional research needs for a broader high-speed range,” said Lori Ozoroski, project manager for NASA’s Commercial Supersonic Technology Project, in a press statement.

The Advanced Air Vehicle Program at NASA is moving into the next phase of high-speed travel research. This will include issuing two 12-month contracts to companies to develop concept designs and technology roadmaps. These roadmaps will explore air travel possibilities while outlining risks and challenges and identifying the technologies that could make this kind of supersonic travel a reality.

One team will be led by Boeing with its partners Exosonic, GE Aerospace, Georgia Tech Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory, Rolls-Royce North American Technologies and others. The second team will be lead by Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems with its partners Blue Ridge Research and Consulting, Boom Supersonic and Rolls-Royce North American Technologies.

Tags:
Boeing
NASA