Supersonic Flight Is Making a Comeback Decades After the Concorde. But One Big Hurdle Remains
NASA’s X-59 produced a quieter sonic thump, and regulators are weighing new rules as companies pursue faster passenger aircraft.
- In June, the Federal Aviation Administration proposed new noise-based standards for supersonic flights over land, setting a threshold of 0.11 pound per square foot and targeting mid-2027 finalization to repeal the 1973 prohibition.
- Military sonic boom tests in Oklahoma City during 1964 generated 1,253 booms over six months, sparking about 12,400 noise complaints and forcing the FAA to compensate residents for property damage, ultimately leading to the 1973 ban.
- Colorado-Based Boom Supersonic, specifically named in the FAA proposal, is developing the Overture aircraft for 60 to 80 passengers at Mach 1.7, with CEO Blake Scholl saying the plane will be ready for passenger flights within four years.
- Stanford professor Juan Alonso called the FAA's move 'a welcome legislation,' while experts note that commercial supersonic travel's comeback depends on certification, airline demand, infrastructure and environmental considerations beyond quieter technology alone.
- NASA aims to gather data enabling the International Civil Aviation Organization to set global sonic boom regulations by 2031, though supersonic aircraft face ongoing challenges including higher operating costs, increased fuel consumption and demanding engineering requirements.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Supersonic travel eyes comeback as quieter jets near reality
More than two decades after the Concorde’s retirement, commercial supersonic travel is once again gaining momentum as aerospace companies and government agencies work to solve one of aviation’s biggest challenges: the sonic boom. Advances in aircraft design, engine technology and noise reduction have fueled renewed optimism that passengers could once again fly faster than the speed of sound, this time with far less disruption to people on the gr…
By Jacopo Prisco, CNN The Oklahoma City skies roared for six months in 1964, when military aircraft deliberately shook the population with a daily discharge of sonic booming booms. It was a polemic test, the consequences of which have persisted to this day. The stampedes — 1,253 in total — were part of an initiative of
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