1/21/2024 0 Comments Noise level supersonic vs subsonic![]() ![]() The aviation sector produces about 2 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions (CO 2) and accounts for 12 percent of all transportation-related emissions, although this share could grow as more people fly and other modes decarbonize (Lee et al. Time is a valuable commodity in the 21st century, and supersonic aircraft will allow humans to travel farther in less time, making the world more accessible to new business connections, greater cross-cultural understanding, and stronger bonds between distant families. Companies driven by the energy and enthusiasm of a new generation of engineers are building on the work of legacy manufacturers and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to bring back supersonic travel (e.g., figure 1).įrom the first scheduled passenger flight in the United States in 1914 to today’s transcontinental network, tourism, business, and the economy have thrived (Sharp 2018), and the tremendous benefits of aviation (IHLG 2017) will be compounded at higher speeds (ICAO 2019). ![]() New materials, advanced engines, and innovation in aerodynamics can render civil supersonic flight economically viable. Rationale for Building Supersonic Commercial Aircraftĭespite the limited success of Concorde, the past decade has seen a rebirth of interest in commercial and business supersonic flight. Nonetheless, important progress is being made on supersonic applications, as reviewed in this article. The subsonic fleet’s fuel efficiency and noise footprints have steadily improved, but the advances enabling these improvements-in computational design, propulsion systems, materials, route optimization, and others-have yet to be applied to a civil supersonic aircraft. According to the Aerospace Industries Association, a flight today produces 50 percent less CO 2 than the same flight in 1990 and aircraft noise footprints have shrunk up to 90 percent in the past 50 years. Indeed, current commercial aircraft are 80 percent more fuel efficient than the first jet airliners. More than 50 years of technological progress enable quieter, more efficient supersonic aircraft. ![]() Several manufacturers are now working to ensure that the end of Concorde was not the end of the supersonic era. Factors such as increases in maintenance costs for the aging Concorde airframes, the fatal accident of July 2000 in France, and the slump in air travel after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, all contributed to Concorde’s relegation to the world’s air museums (Learmount and MacKenzie 2003). The limited production run prevented carriers from achieving economies of scale, and Concorde failed to attain widespread commercial success. The Anglo-French Concorde, which flew passengers at Mach 2 for 27 years, was retired in 2003.Ĭoncorde was a technological marvel but plagued by high operating costs. Nearly two decades ago the age of supersonic commercial aviation appeared to come to a close. ![]()
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