Aerion chairman Robert Bass said that the company remains committed to its supersonic business jet program “as long as we see progress in our discussions with OEMs. We are seeing progress,” he told attendees at the NBAA Convention late last month. “In fact, we are quite encouraged by our discussions. There is no question that the economic impact on the industry has slowed their decision-making progress, but it has not lessened interest in this program.”
What makes the Aerion design different is also what could help it succeed, according to Bass. The Aerion jet is as efficient as some existing business jets when flying just below the speed of sound, which still saves about an hour on a coast-to-coast flight. In ICAO countries under current rules the Aerion jet can fly between Mach 1.1 and 1.2, and once over the ocean and certain land masses, the supersonic jet can fly at its maximum cruise speed of Mach 1.6.
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