The Comac aerospace company develops its version of supersonic aircraft with reduced sonic “bang”. Competitor of Boom’s Outure, he could be ready for 2049.
The Chinese aerospace company Comac is studying the creation of a supersonic commercial airplane that has a low acoustic impact at the time of the passage to Mach 1 (overcoming sound speed), exactly as the US boom is doing. At the moment a study published on Chinese websites describes in detail the project and the challenges that have yet to be overcome. This research reveals the intent to follow a technological path published by Comac itself to build the future C-949 and put it in service in 2049. The declared theme would then follow those of the traditional and subsonic predecessors currently made, namely the C-919 (competitor of the Airbus 320neo and the Boeing 737) and the C-929, a potential competitor of the Boeing 787, With large fuselage suitable for the long range, whose entry into service is scheduled for 2029. Finally, Comac also announced the creation of the C-939, a Birector of the Boeing 777 class, precisely scheduled for 2039.
In the best Chinese tradition, known to copy western products, C949 should soon be revealed, Double corridor and two -storey aircraft, in short, a more modern copy of the Airbus A380. Returning to the supersonic, the ability to reduce the intensity of the sonic boom through the modeling of the cell was demonstrated for the first time by the American Darpa and Northrop Groumman in 2003. Subsequently NASA collaborated with Boeing and Lockheed Martin to study concepts of surfers of low acoustic impact. At the basis of the studies there are no military needs but civil needs, with numerous companies that want to be able to return to proposing super fast trips. This led to the selection of the Skunk Works department of Lockheed for the design and construction of the low boom demonstrator “X-59 Quesst” of NASA, currently being tested on the ground and whose flight is scheduled for the end of the year. Meanwhile, the tests of the Boom Overture model continue. Now the study of the Shanghai Air Force and Air Force Institute, under the direction of Comac, has published Acta Air Force and Astronautical Sinica in the Chinese academic magazine, the evolution of a concept of low -sonic boom airplane that can transport 48 passengers, have a cruise speed of Mach 1.7 and an autonomy of over 10,000 km.
The goal of the Comac is to obtain a sonic boom whose intensity is less than 85 dB on Mach Cruise 1.6 at 16,000 meters above sea level. This value is compared with the 110 dB of the Concorde and the 75 of the former-59. The widespread image has a three -surface configuration, that is, with a canard front plane, arrow wing and a V -queue, apparently fed by a torque pair of turbofan engines without post -bird mounted posteriorly. The length would be 61.2 meters, the wingspan of 22.5 meters and the maximum weight of 79 tons. The passengers would situated individually on both sides of the central corridor but with the seats oriented towards the windows. The cabin appears narrow, with about 2.2 meters wide and 1.8 in height. From the aerodynamic point of view, the goal of mitigating the sonic boom is to prevent shock waves from forming in the bow and in the queue, avoiding that the classic double break -up noise that frightens the population. The Chinese seem to have exploited their studies for the first time by NASA together with the Gulfstream company in 2003, and to want to equip the airport with Fly-by-Wire computerized flight checks.
