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Supersonic 'Son of Concorde' jet hits new speed record - revealing how fast it'll travel from New York City to London
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Supersonic test plane XB-1 smashed its top speed record Tuesday, screaming through the sky at Mach 0.82 or 499 knots (575 miles per hour) true air speed.The milestone, achieved high above California's Mojave Desert, marks the closest that aerospace innovator Boom Technology's supersonic demonstrator aircraft has come to traveling faster than the speed of sound, Mach 1. Boom's XB-1 effort promises to deliver the technical knowhow for their future supersonic passenger jet, Overture: a Mach 1.7 craft slated for testing in 2026. At Mach 0.82, subsonic test plane XB-1 could get from New York City to London in 6 hours — but, at Mach 1.7, the Overture will soon make that trip in just 2.7 hours. But, Tuesday's test also took the exotic aircraft higher than it has every gone before. 'XB-1 reached a new top altitude of 23,015 feet, allowing the team to perform a final cockpit pressurization test,' Boom noted, 'ensuring that it is safe to proceed up to 30,000 feet — the altitude XB-1 will fly when it reaches supersonic speeds.' Boom's project has been likened to the famous Concorde passenger jets of the 20th Century, which flew over the Atlantic at speeds of Mach 2 from 1973 to 2003. Posted by: Skidmark 2024-11-10 |
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