American company Boom Supersonic may be forced to make its engine for its ultra-fast Overture jet as engine manufacturers don’t want to help it build a supersonic powerplant.
In 2020, engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce signed an engagement agreement with Boom to examine an engine that could power the faster-than-sound ‘Overture.’ The jet has orders from United and American Air engines, and Rolls-Royce confirmed that it had withdrawn the agreement in September.
Boom said they would reveal an engine partner as the project is still on track.
“We’ve completed our contract with Boom and delivered various engineering studies for thesupersonic Overturenic program. After careful consideration, Rolls-Royce has determined that the commercial aviation supersonic market is not currently a priority for us and, therefore, will not pursue further work on the program. It has been a pleasure to work with the Boom team, and we wish them every success in the future,” Rolls-Royce said.
Pratt & Whitney’s chief sustainability officer Graham Webb said supersonic jets are “tangential” and are uncertain to partake in the deal. It is another company withworkforcepower to create such an engine,
A finite number of manufacturers are capable of developing a supersonic jet engine; the biggest ones said that it’s not what they are considering.
Others, like GE, Honeywell, and Safron, are not interested in the idea.
Nonetheless, Boom is hell-bent on finding an engine manufacturer as it hopes its $200 million Overture jets will run on 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
“As a practice, we avoid commenting on any ongoing and confidential negotiation with our suppliers until both sides are ready to announce jointly. However, we can reconfirm our intention to announce Boom’s selected engine partner and transformational approach for reliable, cost-effective, and a sustainable supersonic flight later this year,” stated Boom.
