Neither American nor the manufacturer Boom Supersonic would provide financial details Tuesday, including the amount of American's deposit.
American, which also took options for 40 more Boom Overture planes, becomes the second
It has been nearly 20 years since the last supersonic passenger flight by Concorde, the British-French plane that failed to catch on because of the high cost — both for passengers and airlines.
Boom CEO
“There are tens of millions of passengers every year flying in business class on routes where Overture will give a big speed-up,” Scholl said in an interview, “and airlines will be able to do it profitably.”
Boom says its plane will have a top speed of 1.7 times the speed of sound, or about 1,300 mph, and carry between 65 and 80 passengers.
Skeptics have questioned Boom's ambitious timetable, especially in light of the many years it has taken
Notably, Boom does not yet have an engine manufacturer lined up. It is talking with Rolls Royce and others.
“With a supersonic jet, you don't design a plane, you design an engine first,” said
Boom says the plane will fly entirely on sustainable aviation fuel, often made from plant material, which is currently in short supply and very expensive.
Boom, which is based in
Last month, Boom announced changes to the plane's design to make it simpler and less expensive to build and maintain. The most striking change was going from three engines, including a different type on the tail, to four identical engines under the
The market for four-engine planes is shrinking. The
Four-engine planes “are that much worse from every standpoint, from economics to emissions,” Aboulafia said. “Nobody wants more engines, the answer is fewer engines."
While American and United have said they'll buy Boom's plane,
“I have a lot more questions than answers still,”
“Looking to the future, supersonic travel will be an important part of our ability to deliver for our customers,” said
The union representing American's pilots questioned the timing of the airline's investment in planes that won't be available for several years at best. American has struggled this summer, canceling more than 9,300 flights since
“Investing in today’s operation should be management’s sole focus,” said
David
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