- Lockheed Martin might develop a supersonic jet with Aerion.
- The 12-passenger AS2 jet will be able to travel from New York to London in 4.5 hours.
- Aerion plans to have the jets ready for commercial use by 2025.
- Startups like Boom Supersonic and Spike Aerospace are also developing supersonic planes.
Lockheed Martin is considering developing a supersonic jet with Aerion that could completely change travel.
Aerion, a company that develops supersonic technology, plans to have its 12-passenger AS2 jet ready for commercial use by 2025. The jet would be able to fly at 1.5 times the speed of sound, which means it could travel from New York to London in just 4.5 hours. Aerion has received an order for at least 20 AS2 jets so far. Lockheed said in a recent statement that it will take the next year to decide if it wants to join the project.
For the past twenty years, Lockheed has ignored the commercial aircraft business to make aircraft and weapons for the US military. It used to be a major player in the commercial aircraft market, and the company currently brings in more revenue than any other defense contractor.
Aerion and Lockheed wouldn't be the only companies trying to revive supersonic flight. Startup Boom Supersonic has already received 76 pre-orders for its Boom XB-1, and Spike Aerospace revealed plans for its own supersonic jet in 2014.
Commercial supersonic flights haven't been available since the Concorde made its last flight in 2003. Though it could cross the Atlantic in 3 hours, Concorde failed to recover from a deadly crash in 2000. New entrants into the supersonic flight market will have to figure out a way to deal with high costs, government regulations, and the invasive "sonic boom" that affects those beneath the flight path of a supersonic plane.