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| The latest Airbus patent details a new aeroplane which could fly from London to New York in an hour |
THIS Thunderbirds-style aircraft promises to blast from New York City to London in just ONE hour. And it doesn't even need a runway to take-off.
Aircraft manufacturer Airbus is hard at work on a staggering new hypersonic jet concept that will cut transatlantic flights by six hours.
That means you'd barely have the time to watch an episode of Game of Thrones on your in-flight entertainment system before completing the 3,400 mile journey.
Affectionately dubbed Concorde 2, the plane achieves this by blasting across the atlantic at a breath-taking 3,435 mph, some 5,500 km/h.
Airbus was recently granted a patent for the new plane, which puts the 1,353mph top speed of even the legendary Concorde to shame.
The French firm revealed in its patent that its new hypersonic aeroplane would be able to fly at Mach 4.5 – over four times the speed of sound.
Airbus believes its jet would be able to complete trips from Tokyo to Los Angeles in three hours.
To reach these insane speeds the aircraft has to be powered by three different hydrogen engines working together.
Airbus describes how two turbo jets would allow the aircraft to take-off vertically. These turbo jets then retract into the body of the plane, moments before it reaches its top speed.
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| The Airbus aeroplane will blast to 100,000 feet – almost vertically |
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| Airbus will smash through the sound barrier to reach a breath-taking 3,435 mph |
The French aircraft manufacturer says it has developed a design which will limit the sonic boom generated by the untitled aeroplane.
Airbus believes its patented aerodynamics will make the jet much quieter than Concorde, which many complained was too noisy when it travelled over populated areas.
The three hydrogen engines will also allow the Airbus jet to reach heights of around 100,000 feet – double the 40,000 feet cruising altitude used by current airlines.
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| The Airbus jet, nicknamed Concorde 2, would be able to reach the speeds of fictional rocket, Thunder |
Video creator Patent Yogi has examined the Airbus patent in detail and explained how the revolutionary new plane might fly in a new YouTube clip.
The YouTuber has created his own 3D models of the aircraft, based on the simple line designs included with the approved patent, which show the different stages of flight.
The hugely popular video creator describes the flight path of the new jet as "the highest rollercoaster in the world" because of the steep ascent and descent.
Unfortunately when – or if – the new aeroplane does begin ferrying passengers across the pond, it will only be used for VIP guests.
And with only 20 seats onboard the aircraft it will not be the most cost-effective method of transport.
Airbus claims its new jet "will principally fly business travellers and VIP guests, who require transcontinental return journeys within one day."
As with all patents, it's unknown whether Airbus' hypersonic plans ever take off.
Fellow airline manufacturer Boeing patented a design for a Star Wars-esque force field to protect military vehicles earlier this year.
However there has yet to be any news on the development of the new technology.
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| Concorde could carry some 128 passengers and reach speeds of Mach 2, twice the speed of sound |
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| Rising maintenance costs forced Concorde to retire in April 2003 |
The £23 million jet could fly at Mach 2, or twice the speed of sound, and was used to fly between London and New York, Paris and Barbados.
However British Airways and Air France stopped flying their supersonic Concorde aircraft after passenger numbers dropped following a fatal crash in Paris on 25 July 2000.
Rising maintenance costs and the September 11th terror attacks also added to its problems and the plane was finally retired on April 10 2003.
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