Aerion has released a first glimpse of their next aircraft – the AS3. The AS3 Mach 4+ commercial airliner is targeted to take to the skies before the end of the decade, building upon the AS2 supersonic business jet to bring Aerion’s innovation to commercial air transportation.
With conceptualization and design work underway, and built around input from potential customers, Aerion plans for the AS3 to incorporate revolutionary advances in technology to improve efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of supersonic flight, with the capability to transport up to 50 passengers at a range of 7,000 nm.
The company claim that the AS3 would signify an entirely new era in commercial flight, enabling flight between LA and Tokyo in less than three hours.
Earlier this year Aerion expanded their ongoing partnership with NASA’s Langley Research Centre; with the intention of accelerating the realization of commercial high-speed flight and faster point-to-point travel, specifically studying commercial flight in the Mach 3-5 range.
“At Aerion, our vision is to build a future where humanity can travel between any two points on our planet within three hours. Supersonic flight is the starting point, but it is just that – the beginning. To truly revolutionize global mobility as we know it today, we must push the boundaries of what is possible.”
Aerion’s Chairman, President & CEO, Tom Vice
“The AS3 forms the next step in our long-term technology roadmap and will bring Aerion’s high Mach flight capability to a broader audience; we look forward to sharing more on our design later this year.”
Aerion’s pursuit of faster point-to-point travel will begin with the launch of the AS2 supersonic business jet, which will commence production in 2023.
The company mentioned further details about the new Aerion AS3 will be unveiled in late 2021.