Boeing's hypersonic passenger jet could cross the Atlantic in 2 hours

Boeing revealed a concept hypersonic jet that could fly passengers from New York to London in just two hours.

The aerospace giant said Tuesday it’s studying a passenger plane that would be capable of hitting speeds of Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound. That’s faster than the retired Concorde, which flew at around Mach 2.

Flying at Mach 5, Boeing’s new concept jet could cross the Atlantic in two hours or the Pacific in three hours. A flight from New York to London normally takes about seven hours.

Kevin Bowcutt, senior technical fellow and chief scientist of hypersonics at Boeing, said a hypersonic passenger vehicle could be airborne in 20 to 30 years and eventually enter use as a jet for global travel. Boeing is considering both commercial and military applications.

“We’re excited about the potential of hypersonic technology to connect the world faster than ever before,” Bowcutt said in a post on Boeing’s website. “Boeing is building upon a foundation of six decades of work designing, developing and flying experimental hypersonic vehicles, which makes us the right company to lead the effort in bringing this technology to market in the future.”

The sleek concept, one of multiple hypersonic planes that Boeing engineers are studying, was unveiled at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics conference in Atlanta. It will be on display at the Farnborough International Airshow in July.