Kerry Lynch stepped into the role of editor of the&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;monthly magazine in May 2022 after serving with&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;for eight years. She joined&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;in December 2014 as a senior editor covering Washington and business aviation news. She has also served on Convention News teams, including as editor of&nbsp;HAI Convention News. Lynch previously spent 25 years with Aviation Week. During her time there, she reported for and later steered&nbsp;The Weekly of Business Aviation, oversaw business aviation content on the&nbsp;Aviation Week Intelligence Network, served on the&nbsp;Show News&nbsp;staff, and held roles as the Washington columnist for&nbsp;Business &amp; Commercial Aviation&nbsp;and&nbsp;Overhaul &amp; Maintenance&nbsp;monthly magazines. In 2021 she was honored with the National Business Aviation Association Platinum Wing Award for lifetime achievement in journalism and was the 2004 recipient of the National Air Transportation Association’s Aviation Journalism Excellence Award. She also has been a recipient of an Aerospace Media Award for business aviation (2022) and NBAA Gold Wing Award (2003, 2024). Lynch graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor of arts in journalism.

Editor, AIN monthly magazine

Kerry Lynch

Spike Aerospace is refining the aerodynamics, cabin configuration, and lower-boom performance of its Mach 1.6 S-512 Diplomat as it lays the groundwork to bring a supersonic business jet to market. The company is completing what it calls an “enhanced study” that builds on previous research and design iterations to validate the aircraft’s ability to meet stringent noise requirements over land with low-boom capability.
“For the moment, most of the work is in computational fluid design (CFD) analysis and evaluation,” a company spokeswoman told AIN. “In the near future, we may conduct wind-tunnel studies for several critical areas of flight that are more difficult/less reliable to do in CFD.”
She added that the CFD work involves engineers conducting several trade&nbsp;studies&nbsp;where they adjust one parameter, such as the powerplants or speed, that might require a slight redesign of the aircraft. “Then they study the impact on the other parameters,” she said.
The Atlanta-based firm is further working with aerospace companies, as well as key industry partners and academic institutions, to accelerate design, plot out certification, and prepare for market readiness, it said.&nbsp;Spike Aerospace plans to develop a supersonic jet that can link London and Dubai in about 3.2 hours. Initial designs would have up to an 18-passenger cabin that, in lieu of windows, would sport full-length panoramic high-definition displays.
“Our goal is to redefine long-distance travel for business and government leaders, offering the speed of supersonic with the comfort and discretion of a private jet,” said Spike Aerospace president and CEO Vik Kachoria. “The S-512 Diplomat is being engineered to connect cities like New York and Paris in under four hours—quietly and sustainably.”
First flight of the S-512 is scheduled for late 2027, with service entry estimated in 2031. Range previously had been reported as 6,200 nm, but the spokeswoman said it now is 4,800 nm.
Spike Aerospace plans come as the White House issued an executive order in June that directed the FAA to lift the ban within 180 days and release a final rule establishing new aircraft noise certification regulations for such operations within two years.
In May, the company <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2025-05-15/spike-aerospace-resurfaces-supersonic-bizjet-candidate">announced</a> it was relaunching the program with “renewed leadership and sharper focus” and actively recruiting key engineering staff, engaging with suppliers, and preparing its capital roadmap.

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