Boom Supersonic's experimental supersonic jet, the XB-1, achieved a major milestone on Tuesday by breaking the sound barrier three times during a livestream event. The successful flight marks a significant step forward in the company's goal to reintroduce commercial hypersonic travel.
Boom Supersonic celebrated a significant milestone on its journey to reintroduce commercial hypersonic flights on Tuesday. A pilot flying the aerospace company's XB-1 scale prototype successfully broke the sound barrier during a livestream event—not once, but three times. The XB-1 took off from the Mojave Air & Space Port near Barstow, California, at approximately 11:21 AM EST.
Chief Test Pilot Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenburg ascended to an altitude of 34,000 ft before initiating the supersonic test. At 11:32 AM EST, the aircraft achieved Mach 1.1, marking its first supersonic breakthrough. Brandenburg then guided the XB-1 on a deceleration and descent path. However, the aircraft briefly broke the sound barrier once again during the descent, prompting lighthearted humor from the flight control team. A few minutes later, XB-1 surpassed Mach 1 for the third time before landing at 11:54 AM EST after a total flight time of 33.49 minutes. This historic test took place in the Bell X-1 Supersonic Corridor, named after the first aircraft to break the sound barrier in 1947. The success comes less than a year after the demonstrator aircraft's debut flight on March 22, 2023. The XB-1 conducted ten additional flights prior to today's Mach 1 breakthrough, with its most recent flight on January 10, reaching Mach 0.95 at an altitude of 29,481 ft. Today's achievement officially makes Boom Supersonic's XB-1 the first civil aircraft to achieve supersonic flight over the continental US. Accompanying the XB-1 were two chase planes. The XB-1, at approximately 63 feet long, is about one-third the size of Overture, Boom Supersonic's proposed commercial jet. Overture is designed to accommodate 64-80 passengers and complete international trips at speeds up to Mach 1.7, roughly twice the speed of today's subsonic jets but slightly slower than the Concorde. The path to Overture's commercial debut has faced several delays. The XB-1's first flight was initially scheduled for 2021, but faced pushbacks to address engineering and design concerns. Although such issues are common in the aerospace industry, Overture's proposed 2029 release date is likely to be pushed back several times before a working commercial hypersonic plane takes flight. 'Historically, the human race has always wanted to go faster,' said livestream co-host and former Chief Concorde Pilot Mike Bannister shortly after XB-1's pair of supersonic achievements
SUPERSONIC FLIGHT BOOM SUPERSONIC XB-1 OVERTURE CONCORDE HYPERSONIC TRAVEL AVIATION
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Boom Supersonic to break sound barrier during historic test flight today: Watch liveMichael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, 'Out There,' was published on Nov. 13, 2018.
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