Supersonic air transportation is set for a return, almost fourteen years after the Concorde was officially grounded. Boom Technology, an aviation technology startup, has created a three engine jet that’s equipped to carry 55 passengers and travel at 2x the speed of sound.
Unfortunately, overland supersonic regulations will prevent Boom from initially offering New York to California flights, but the start-up is hopeful that once they prove how quiet the operation is, they’ll be able to sell 2 hour and 20 minute NYC – San Francisco / LAX flights. In the meantime, the plan calls for a 3 hour flight to London from New York at a cost of $5K, compared to the Concorde’s $15K price.
Boom revealed its design for the XB-1 demonstrator jet last November, and is working with Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic to build and test the prototype in 2017. They aim to begin flying commercial air passengers in the early 2020s.
A flight on the Concorde was one of the most luxurious award redemptions available at the time. How many miles/points did it cost? It was very program dependent! Did you know that you were able to redeem AA, Continental, Delta, US, and SPG points and miles among other foreign award currencies for a free award trip on the Concorde? As all seats were considered First, the rates weren’t that bad…especially with the SPG Qantas trick –
125,000 AAdvantage Miles
100,000 SPG Points
200,000 OnePass Miles
160,000 SkyMiles
125,000 US Airways Miles
200,000 Membership Rewards Points
Related Concorde Posts:
- Airbus Files Patent for Concorde 2, Concorde 1 Back? + How Many Miles Got You a Flight
- The Pepsi Concorde – Yes, the Soda Company!
- The Future? JFK-LAX in 45 mins, JFK-Europe in 1 Hour, & Train from LHR-PEK in 2 Days
- Virgin Galactic to Replace the Concorde – Look Back @ Award Rates
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2 comments
Save the weight and wiring for all those displays, people can bring their own nowadays.
Just have a decent wifi connection, although flight short enough can live without that too.
[…] Last June we reported that supersonic air transportation was set for a return, almost fourteen years after the Concorde was officially grounded. Boom Technology, an aviation technology startup, has created a three engine jet that’s equipped to carry 55 passengers and travel at 2x the speed of sound. Well, Boom is now closer to takeoff after a “milestone” engine delivery. All pieces are now in place and ready for assembly. Tests will take place over the next several years with an anticipated first passenger flight date of 2023. The Richard Branson backed airline says that 7 unnamed carriers are interested in deals with the jet maker and that JAL and Virgin Galactic will be the first carriers to operate the jet. […]