Airbus developing supersonic commercial plane

  • 05/08/2015
(Photo: iStock)
(Photo: iStock)

Twelve years after the grounding of the Concorde, a new supersonic plane has been designed that could fly from London to New York in an hour.

Nicknamed the 'son of Concorde', it would fly at four times the speed of sound.

The British-French plane was a technological pioneer. For 27 years, it carried passengers at twice the speed of sound.

It had its problems, however. Its sonic boom irritated those under its flight path, and its fate was sealed after an accident over Paris in 2000, in which more than 100 people died.

Three years later, all 14 of the Concordes in service were grounded.

The new supersonic plane from Airbus features a rocket engine at the back. Once airborne, this would launch it into a near vertical climb and it would break the sound barrier at around 35,000 metres.

Watch the video for the full ITV report.