When Boeing isn’t trying to engineer Qantas’ dream ultra-long-haul aircraft, the manufacturer is looking at ways to speed up air travel so that one day Aussies can fly to Europe in no more than five hours.
And it seems Boeing may be close (kind of).
The Seattle-based business revealed plans over the weekend for a new hypersonic aircraft that can travel up to 4,038mph.
For those (like me) who have a limited understanding of aircraft speed, that’s almost seven times faster than the top speed of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner (593 mph) and five times the speed of sound.
You’ll want to stay strapped in for that flight.
According to Boeing’s Chief Hypersonic Scientist, Kevin Bowcutt, the new plane is around 20 to 30 years away from launching but said it’s an exciting opportunity to “connect the world faster than ever before”, LAD Bible reported.
“Boeing is building upon a foundation of six decades of work designing, developing and flying experimental hypersonic vehicles.”
Kevin Bowcutt, Boeing Chief Hypersonic Scientist
He continued, saying that the aircraft unveiled at the 2018 American Institute of Aeronautics Aviation is one of several hypersonic vehicle concepts the manufacturer is studying.
“Engineers are working company-wide to develop enabling technology which will position the company for the time when customers and markets are ready to reap the benefits of hypersonic flight,” he said.
In the meantime, Boeing is competing with Airbus to develop an ultra-long-haul aircraft that can connect Qantas’ passengers non-stop to destinations such as Seattle, Rio de Janeiro, Paris and more.
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