Supersonic airliner concept goes through early trials at NIAR

Boom Supersonic, a startup aiming to develop a supersonic airliner, has been leaning heavily on Wichita State University for its concept airplane’s early testing.

The Colorado-based company said in a news release last week that since announcing development of a one-third scale prototype supersonic airliner it calls the XB-1, “the Boom team has been engaged in extensive wind tunnel tests at the Walter H. Beech Wind Tunnel at Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research.”

The XB-1, which Boom said in the March 22 release is expected to fly “in about a year,” will prove the technologies that the company said will make supersonic air travel affordable.

Boom said it completed Series A fundraising totaling $33 million last week. Its total funding stands at $41 million, which Boom said will finance fabrication of the XB-1, “a thorough flight test program” as well as sonic boom testing.

Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic has an option on Boom’s first 10 supersonic airliners, and is providing Boom manufacturing and engineering support on the airplane through its the Spaceship Co. The airliner is expected to carry between 45 and 55 passengers and have a long-range cruise speed of Mach 2.2.

This story was originally published March 27, 2017 at 2:46 PM with the headline "Supersonic airliner concept goes through early trials at NIAR."