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For the first time in more than half a century, the United States government is paving the way for a new generation of ultra-fast aircraft to take to the skies. A ban on continental supersonic flights has been in place since the 1970s, to ensure that no one suffers from the noisy sonic booms they leave in their wake. However, aeronautical engineering has come a long way since then and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) knows it.
Under a new proposed FAA rule, revised noise-based certification standards for supersonic aircraft will ensure that the sonic boom overpressure of any future aircraft will not exceed 0.11 pounds per square foot (psf). Basically, a supersonic civilian ride would sound more like a car door slamming than an explosive gunshot to anyone at ground level.
“Ultimately, we can repeal the 1970s ban on supersonic flight over U.S. territory while minimizing the impact of noise on residents of communities along the route and near airports,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in an accompanying statement.
Although domestic supersonic flights never became a major form of travel, the U.S. military once routinely conducted aircraft tests near residential areas. The shock waves resulting from the sonic boom frequently shattered windows, cracked building walls, and unnerved citizens within earshot. After sustained pushback, the government banned continental supersonic aircraft outside designated remote areas in 1973.
Between the damaging shock waves and multiple fatal crashes of the Concorde plane, the image of the supersonic aviation industry remained tarnished for decades, but that hasn’t stopped private companies and the government from carrying out multiple projects focused on improving safety and dampening noise. Last year, NASA finally confirmed its long-rumored X-59 experimental aircraft that produces more of a sonic “hit” than a sonic boom. Meanwhile, private companies such as Dawn Aerospace and Boom are developing their own commercial supersonic aircraft.
In addition to this week’s proposed rule, the FAA said it intends to submit another proposal later this year aimed at codifying takeoff and landing noise standards for supersonic aircraft. The return of ultra-fast air travel may still be a few years away, but the FAA’s support will ensure this happens sooner rather than later.
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