American Airlines joins the initial order for supersonic aircraft

[brooklynite]

American Airlines agrees to buy 20 supersonic planes from Boom

American Airlines has agreed to purchase 20 supersonic Overture planes from Boom Supersonic, the companies announced Tuesday.

The deal is the second firm order in the last two years for Boom, still years from building its first commercial airplane. United Airlines made a commitment last year to buy 15 Overture jets.

“Passengers want flights that are faster, more convenient, more sustainable and that’s what Overture delivers,” Boom CEO Blake Scholl told CNBC. “Flight times can be as little as half as what we have today, and that works great in networks like American where we can fly Miami to London in less than five hours.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/16/american-airlines-agrees-to-buy-20-supersonic-planes-from-boom.html

For those imagining that this is a frivolous purchase for the sake of ultra-wealthy passengers, let me remind you that, in the late 60s, SSTs were expected to become the workhorse of international flights, while the 747s would be converted to cargo use.

[msongs]

1. well the 747 bit turned out to be accurate nt

[BannonsLiver]

2. Except the Concorde did price out about 99 percent of the public

And the 747 went on to have a 50 year service life with a number of different carriers with passengers from all walks.

Given the tiny cabins and the purchase price for the carriers there’s no evidence anyone but the wealthy will be flying much on these, assuming they ever fly.

[brooklynite]

3. Because the environmental regulations stopped their mass production...

The only way BA and AF could recover their costs was to target top dollar travelers...

FWIW - the first ten years of 747 usage was under heavy Government fare regulation, so there was no need to cram in passengers to the maximum capacity of the plane.

How many passengers could have fit in here?

[BannonsLiver]

5. Yeah, those old cabins were crazy. Continental had video games on their DC10's.

I’m a fan of both aircraft. The Concorde was amazing for its time and the Queen of the Skies is much loved by aviation enthusiasts.

[brooklynite]

6. I was able to fly the Concorde once before it shut down...

It would have been impractical in general use after 1980; not for the cost, but for the limited carrying capacity.

[tinrobot]

4. An airplane company named Boom?

Hopefully they won't ever crash. If they do, the jokes will write themselves.