Going Fast … Quietly

March 1, 2007 – Quiet, so quiet you can hear a pin drop. Well, maybe not that quiet. But developers of a new supersonic jet say it will fly nearly silent, as quiet as a kite flying overhead. And that could mean that the proposed jetliner called the Quiet Supersonic Transport, or QSST, could become the first civilian supersonic plane approved for overland routes, CNN reports. The two-engine gull-wing aircraft would leave a sonic wake that's only one hundredth the strength of the Mach 2-capable Concorde, the 100-seat plane that was permanently grounded following a fatal accident in 2000. Although the QSST shares its general shape with the Concorde, it is less than half the size and uses aerodynamics to control the pressure generated as the plane displaces air at supersonic speeds. With air disturbances along the craft evened out, the QSST generates more shockwaves of smaller magnitude, minimizing the sound. The Federal Aviation Administration restricted supersonic aircraft like Concorde to transoceanic flights because that craft created sonic booms strong enough to rattle dishes on the ground below. Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works has been developing the project for six years under a $25-million contract from Supersonic Aerospace International, founded by J. Michael Paulson. While the QSST will be quieter than jets of the past, it will still be fast — about 1,100 miles per hour, or Mach 1.6 to 1.8. That means travelers will be able to fly between New York and Los Angeles in two hours, not the six hours it traditionally takes. The 12-passenger QSST would fly at between 47,000 and 57,000 feet with a range of 4,600 miles. With a spacious bathroom and sophisticated Audio/Video system, the jetliner is aimed at diplomats or executives who need to get somewhere fast and who are willing to pay a high price for that speed. Paulson plans to settle on a design in the next year, assemble an international consortium to manufacture the jet, and put it on the market by 2014 for about $80 million. By the numbers The QSST has a maximum weight of 153,000 pounds, is 132.1 feet long, has a wingspan of 63 feet, and an overall height of 21.3 feet. By comparison, the Gulfstream 550 has a maximum weight of 91,000 pounds is 96.4 feet in length, has a wingspan of 93.5 feet, and a overall height of 25.8 feet. The Boeing 737-700 has a maximum weight of 154,500 pounds, is 110.2 feet in length, has a wingspan of 117.4 feet, and an overall height of 41.3 feet.

An artist drawing of what the QSST might look like in the future. The wind tunnel test models of the QSST. While currently in the research stage, a flying version of the airplane could be ready to quietly break the speed of sound in just a few years. For More Information Skunk Works Quiet Supersonic Transport

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