At an innovation panel held on the first day of the Paris Air Show, FAA Acting Administrator Dan Elwell announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that modifies and clarifies the existing regulatory procedures to obtain FAA approval to test supersonic aircraft. This NPRM is described by the FAA as “a first, necessary milestone toward the reintroducing civil supersonic flight.”
The FAA’s aim is to support the various supersonic aircraft (SST) currently under development in the U.S., all of which are coming up against overland noise rules that precede the launch of the Concorde, and which were instrumental in preventing overland flights of Concorde aircraft. While the new NPRM that Elwell announced on Monday suggests that those noise rules will stay on the books for regular commercial SST operations, it aims to make flight testing the aircraft easier and support rapid development.
“The U.S. Department of Transportation and the FAA are committed toward the safe and environmentally-sound research and development of supersonic aircraft,” Elwell told attendees at Le Bourget. “We are confident in the next generation of aviation pioneers who want to open new opportunities for business, economic, and aviation growth.”
But can a relaunch of commercial supersonic flight be “environmentally-sound”? And should it be a priority even as subsonic flight comes under greater scrutiny for its environmental impact? The company responsible for developing the Concorde believes that aeronautical innovation is better invested in other areas.
During Airbus Innovation Days, held in May 2019 at the company’s facilities in Toulouse, Grazia Vittadini, Chief Technology Officer at Airbus, addressed this question directly, saying:
“Who built the last business supersonic aircraft? You are on the site where this happened. We do have the history. We do have the heritage. We do have the skills and competency. Let’s not forget defense, space and military aircraft-the Tornados and the Eurofighters are part of Airbus. We have it, if we wanted to go there. The question we ask ourselves is how is this possibly compatible with the environmental sustainability targets which we are committed to? Not just because it is the flavor of the year, but because we deeply believe that is the direction we need to take. As of today, we cannot reconcile skills and competencies that we have in-house with products where market interest needs to be confirmed and with no reconciliation with the environmental sustainability targets which animate us in all we do, and in all the technologies that we develop.”
Instead, Airbus is investing its innovative capabilities on addressing the environmental backlash against commercial aviation, including the exploration and development of hybrid electric propulsion systems that will support commercial flights and noise reduction in all aircraft operations.
Airbus is not alone in questioning the viability of supersonic transport on environmental grounds. The International Council On Clean Transportation, a think tank dedicated to studying the environmental impact of civil aviation, published a detailed report last year which warned that supersonic commercial flights were incompatible with environmental targets for civil aviation.
