(Photo: Hermes)
Atlanta: A local American company is working on a hypersonic plane that can travel five times the speed of sound from London to New York in just 90 minutes.
The plane, called Halcayon, is being built by Atlanta-based aerospace and defense technology startup Hermes, which aims to revolutionize air travel.
Flying at a speed of 4,000 miles per hour (Mach 5), this hypersonic aircraft will become the fastest commercial passenger aircraft once operational.
According to the company, testing and operations of this aircraft will be started by the end of this decade.
125 routes are planned for this aircraft. Although this hypersonic aircraft can complete transatlantic flights in one go due to its speed. However, transpacific (across the Pacific) flights such as Los Angeles to Tokyo may require a short layover.
Interestingly, these aircraft cannot be flown on intercontinental and inland land routes due to the powerful sonic booms that cause these aircraft to travel five times faster than the speed of sound.
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