Boeing's concept aircraft will eventually be used for covert reconnaissance and airborne assault
Hypersonic strike aircraft could go five times the speed of sound
A successor to the legendary Blackbird SR-71 spy plane has been unveiled by BOEING.
The new 'Son of Blackbird' was revealed at an event in Orlando, Florida. However, it is only a concept design for now.
Boeing's hypersonics chief spoke to Aviation Week Aerospace Daily. He described how Boeing was planning a two-step development process for the new war plane.
The first stage would involve flight tests of an "F16-sized, single-engine" precursor vehicle that acts as a "proof of concept".
The second stage is the creation of a "twin-engine, full-scale operational vehicle" that has roughly similar dimensions to the 107-foot-long SR-71.
Boeing's ultimate goal is an aircraft that can travel at speeds beyond Mach 5 – that's five times the speed of sound.
The speed of sound – or Mach 1 – is around 1235km/h. So hitting Mach 5 would mean the Son of Blackbird would have to travel at an incredible 6,174km/h.
For comparison, a Boeing 747 passenger jet typically reaches cruising speeds of just 885km/h.
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