A Q&A with Aerion – CJI London 2018
Aerion AS2 supersonic business jet.
Brief and very much to the point, interviewed by CJI’s Alasdair Whyte at CJI London 2018, Ernest Edwards was confident of the on time completion of Aerion’s supersonic corporate jet.
Aerion and Lockheed Martin agreed on the AS2’s future development on December 15 last year, and Edwards disclosed that Lockheed’s Marietta, GA plant has the capacity to build the new plane.
The engines? Edwards wouldn’t be specific, but he did disclose that it’s among the commercial aircraft industry’s most popular, and that it was suggested by their former strategic partner Airbus. He also said that the engine meets FAA noise and pollution regulations and that GE is working on reconfiguring it to deliver more thrust and greater altitude – making supersonic flight possible.
Edwards confirmed the AS2 will come with a $120 million price tag, and supposedly it will be worth every cent. Despite the fact that supersonic flight is currently prohibited in American airspace, the AS2 is ‘boomless’ up to Mach 1.2. Without create a sonic boom over land, Aerion is confident they will be able to still fly supersonically over US soil.
At Mach 0.96 the AS2 has a range of 5,300 nautical miles, and at Mach 1.4, it’s 4,200 miles. At Mach 1.4 you’d keep up with the sun flying from New York to LA, the City of the angels.
