October 7th 2024.
Imagine being able to travel from London to New York in just one hour. It sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie, but it may soon become a reality thanks to the Venus Aerospace Stargazer hypersonic jet. It's been over 20 years since the iconic Concorde took its last flight, and since then, the concept of supersonic flight has been mostly grounded.
The reason for this is the loud sonic booms that occur when a plane breaks the sound barrier, causing disturbance on the ground. Additionally, the technology required for supersonic flight is expensive, making it exclusively available to the wealthiest individuals. However, there is a renewed interest in super speedy planes, and this time, they could be even faster than Concorde.
Last week, Venus Aerospace, a startup engineering company, unveiled their newest creation - the Venus Detonation Ramjet 2000 lb Thrust Engine, also known as 'VDR2'. This engine is capable of reaching speeds of Mach 6, which is an incredible six times the speed of sound. To put that into perspective, that's 3,600 miles per hour, meaning you could travel from London to New York in just one hour.
Venus Aerospace plans to conduct a test flight next year, in partnership with aerospace company Velontra. Their goal is to unlock the potential of high-speed flight for both commercial and defence aircraft. The Venus Stargazer M4 Hypersonic aircraft will use a combination of jet and rocket power, taking off with traditional jet engines and then transitioning to rockets once it reaches altitude.
Although the plane won't technically reach the edge of space, it will fly high enough to see the curve of the Earth and the darkness of space beyond it. The team at Venus Aerospace is confident that their engine will revolutionize the high-speed flight economy, and their partnership with Velontra, who specialize in high-speed air combustion, will help them achieve their goal.
Other companies, such as Sierra Space and Hermeus, are also working on similar technology. Even Chinese company Space Transportation is reportedly developing a 'rocket with wings' for space tourism and intercity travel. If these planes become available for commercial flights, they will be very different from the big planes we're used to in this day and age.
They will be smaller, without windows, and designed to reduce the noise from sonic booms to more of a sonic thump. However, they will still have to take routes over the ocean to minimize noise disruption over land. It's an exciting time for the aviation industry, and with companies like Venus Aerospace leading the way, we may soon see a new era of high-speed flight.
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