EXPLAINED - United's $3 Billion Dollar Deal For Supersonic Jets...

Why did United of all people need to buy supersonic jets? Let's get into it!

The airline will purchase 15 of Boom's "Overture" supersonic jets from Boom Supersonic, and will have an option of 35 more, for a total of 50. They will use the 55-85 seater aircraft for supersonic routes across the Atlantic and ensure that they meet all the safety requirements put to them by United and the FAA.

The aircraft is not expected to fly until 2029 at the earliest, so expect delays to the program, but tickets will cost around $5000-$7000 USD per flight. Flights will go from New York to Frankfurt Germany, New York to London (obviously) and Supersonic flights to Tokyo from San Fransisco. But at the current system the plane hasn't got enough juice to get from SFO to HNE (Tokyo) so not sure how that is going to work.

Boom Supersonic, formally Boom Aerospace, has built the XB-1 prototype but it has yet to find a way to make it fly or prove that it is able to make supersonic travel possible. However, with this money there are much closer to their goal.

The future remains to be seen if United, among Virgin Atlantic and Japan Airlines will see a supersonic jet in the next ten years, beating their competition, or if the whole project is folly.

Let me know what you think in the comments!