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Will the Concorde return for commercial flights?
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When the Concorde was in business travelers were able to arrive in London from New York City in just over three hours. The possibility of the reduced jet lag and weekend travel were enticing, but only available to those with $10,000 to spend. Despite the high price, it seemed like the Concorde, with over three decades of commercial flights, ruled the sky. However the high price tag and the crash of 2000 soon led the decline of the airliner. The last flight of the Concorde was from New York to London's Heathrow airport in 2003. The importance of such a day was evident in the crowds of onlookers and the 100 celebrities aboard. It was a sad day.
Although it's been close to six years since the last commercial flight, talks about the possible revival of the Concorde haven't ceased. CNN Travel recently published an article about such a possibility in the coming years, but it won't be easy to achieve. One of the challenges of the supersonic airliner is the sonic boom. The plane goes so fast that it breaks the sound barrier causing a thunderous noise during flight. Many researchers and engineers continue to work on what they call 'shaping the boom' in order to reduce the noise. A noisy flight may seem like a small price to pay for such a fast flight, however there are limitations. The United States has banned cross-continental flights of the airliner because of the sonic boom, hence why the Concorde flight was limited to over water routes.
At the moment technological advancements are not driving down the price for flight. The new technology necessary to reduce the sonic boom uses up to 10 percent more fuel, further raising the cost; however if in the coming years it becomes possible to fly the Concorde at a reduced price, the Concorde may fly again. Although it currently seems like a bit of a stretch, especially considering how expensive it is for airline companies to stay afloat. Supersonic technology is a part of our future it is just a matter of how to make it available to the commercial public without the exorbitant price tag or a loss for airline companies.
Are you willing to pay more for shorter flight times?
For more info: CNN Travel: Supersonic travel may return, minus the boom, CNN SciTech Blog: Will hypersonice flight take off?
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