Tuesday saw the announcement by American Airlines Group Inc. AAL, +0.52% that it had reached an agreement to buy 20 Boom Supersonic Overture aircraft, with an option to buy up to 40 more.
The airplane is anticipated to go twice as fast as the current fastest commercial aircraft. With a range of 4,250 nautical miles and a design speed of Mach 1.7, Overture can accommodate 65 to 80 people. Additionally, the plane will take around half the time to travel over 600 different routes around the globe. The airlines stated in a joint statement: “Flying from Miami to London in under five hours and from Los Angeles to Honolulu in three hours are among the numerous possibilities.
It is anticipated that The Overture would debut in 2025 and transport its first passengers by 2029. Following an accident involving an Air France flight, British Airways and Air France retired the Concorde in 2003, thereby putting an end to supersonic travel. The U.S. Global Jets ETF JETS, +0.95% has down 10%, mirroring the collapse of the S&P 500 SPX, +0.40%, but American shares were marginally higher premarket. American shares have lost 15% of their value so far this year.
