Boom Updates SST Design

Boom Supersonic, which has been working for a few years to develop its ideas for a supersonic airliner, unveiled its final design for a subscale prototype on Tuesday at the Paris Air Show. The company said it will fly the demonstrator next year. "We now have everything required to build history's first independently developed supersonic aircraft — the funding, technical design and manufacturing partners," said Blake Scholl, founder and CEO of Boom Supersonic. The XB-1 Demonstrator will fly with three GE engines and Honeywell avionics, the company said. Final assembly is underway at Boom's facility at Centennial Airport, near Denver. The company said it has orders in hand for 76 aircraft, from five airlines.

The demonstrator will be 68 feet long, with a 17-foot delta wingspan, the company said. It will have seats for two, a single pilot and an optional flight-test engineer or passenger. It will be capable of cruise speeds up to Mach 2.2 and a range of 1,000 NM. The full-size 170-foot-long airliner will require a crew of two, and will carry 55 passengers for up to 9,000 NM at cruise speeds up Mach 2.2. Subsonic flight testing will be conducted from Centennial, the company said; supersonic test flights will launch from Edwards Air Force Base, in Southern California.