Supersonic travel could be making a comeback
Going back to the future with the return of supersonic travel is on the cards by 2050.
Published on the 03 October 2024
British Airways’ Concorde ‘Alpha Bravo’ on display at Heathrow Airport in London CREDIT: Adobe Stock
Going back to the future with the return of supersonic travel is on the cards by 2050.
That’s according to UNSW’s Dr Sonya Brown, a Senior Lecturer in Aerospace Design in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, who hopes it comes around even sooner.
“I think it’s more of a business case thing. There’s nothing technical stopping us from travelling Mach Two right now.”
The ‘Mach’ number indicates how fast something is moving compared to the speed of sound. Anything higher than Mach One is moving faster than sound.
Commercial supersonic flight has been on pause since the Concorde stopped flying in 2003. Highly prohibitive costs and an aviation disaster on an Air France flight in 2000 were seen as factors.
Fast forward to now and Dr Brown says there’s plenty of supersonic passenger planes in the production pipeline.
“There have been several aircraft in at least early development stages, particularly around the business jet side.
“For example, look at people like Taylor Swift recently, jetting around the world in a private business jet, who do have the kind of funds that that would require.
“So, I think it will happen. It's just a matter of when that business case gets across the line.”
Speaking on UNSW’s Engineering the Future podcast, Dr Brown was joined by Andrew Moore, the co-founder of sustainable aerospace company AMSL Aero.
He says there is an environmental question hanging over the return of supersonic travel
“Flying faster, of course, uses a lot more energy and, as a consequence, uses a lot more fuel.
“I know there are challenges around hydrogen-fueled supersonic air flight, not in the combustion of hydrogen, but just in the volume that hydrogen takes up.
“I think there's some great opportunities as we go to that real zero emissions [economy].”
But while a supersonic jet might chew up fuel, there’s a surprising upside to going so fast.
“Concorde had so much airframe life left, because the flight times are so short, it didn't have corrosion problems,” Mr Moore says.
“Because the airframe got hot, which boiled off all the moisture, which meant it never corroded.”
“If the fuel costs were low, then, you know, it would be a more viable form of transport for everybody else.”
But they’re not, and for now supersonic travel could only really work with a lot of take-up, Dr Brown says.
“I think when we're looking for supersonic aircraft, the space and the volume issue is definitely a critical one, you really do want to effectively get as many people in there as you can.”
And as for going one better than supersonic travel with commercial hypersonic flight? Don’t count on it.
“We've got really high G-force loads just to get there. More, typically, than a human can withstand.” Dr Brown says.
“The skin temperatures on the outside, we're talking over 1000 degrees Celsius.
“So, the amount of insulation you'd have to include to allow these vehicles to have humans inside is also not particularly feasible.”
As Australia’s best engineering faculty turns 75, there are just as many reasons why we’ve earned that title. Discover new stories weekly, celebrating the successes that have enabled progress for all.
