Chinese scientists successfully conducted the first publicly announced test flight of a prototype supersonic aircraft. In this test flight, a small-scale prototype reached a maximum speed of Mach 6.56, or approximately 8,100 km/h, which is more than six times the speed of sound and considered an important milestone in the development of supersonic aircraft, according to reports by VnExpress.
The aircraft, known as the Yunxing ("Cloud Rider"), is being developed by a team led by Cui Kai, a researcher at the Institute of Mechanics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The test flight lasted nearly 20 minutes and addressed a long-standing challenge for aircraft designers: as flight speed increases, the usable space inside the cabin decreases. The design aims to overcome this limitation, which has historically restricted supersonic aircraft to military applications such as missiles and reconnaissance drones.
"At that time, everyone thought this was a crazy idea. We faced a lot of skepticism," Cui Kai recounted, as reported by VnExpress. The project started in 2013 with the goal of revolutionizing air transportation by enabling passengers and cargo to be transported in very short times, comparable to those of large passenger aircraft.
One of the core innovations of the Yunxing's design is the attachment of wide wings on top of the fuselage like a cloak. This unique configuration converts the downward pressure generated by high-speed travel into upward lift, addressing the issue that at high speeds, the front of the airframe must withstand large downward pressure, affecting the vehicle's ability to fly at high altitudes.
After introducing the idea in 2018, Cui's team continued to refine the design and intensified testing in wind tunnels. Each test cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. The researchers conducted ground tests several times to check the feasibility of various models, paving the way for the successful test flight. However, Cui did not disclose the status of the full-size aircraft's construction or the schedule for the first flight.
According to VnExpress, the Yunxing aircraft is designed for vertical takeoff and landing and is powered by the Jindouyun engine. This propulsion system, named after the "somersault cloud" used by the Monkey King in the classic Chinese novel "Journey to the West," utilizes detonation combustion technology. Shock waves created from the detonation process compress the incoming air, which is essential for thrust generation.
One of the main problems that the designers of this aircraft faced was the limited interior space in supersonic aircraft. Cui Kai and his team tried to solve this problem by creating suitable interior space for commercial and passenger uses, which could allow future supersonic aircraft to carry as many passengers or as much cargo as wide-body jets.
China is currently testing this supersonic aircraft that can transport passengers from Beijing to New York in less than two hours, a significant improvement over the conventional flight time of more than 13 hours. The fastest transatlantic crossing for a Concorde was previously recorded at 2 hours and 53 minutes, with standard air travel taking around eight hours, according to Mirror.
At high speeds, the front of the airframe must withstand large downward pressure, affecting the vehicle's ability to fly at high altitudes. The Yunxing's cloak-like wing design seeks to mitigate this effect.
In August 2021, Cui's team successfully obtained permission to test-fly the vehicle at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert. The test helped preliminarily verify a design that was once thought to be impossible when announced six years ago.
Due to the sensitivity of the project, details about the full-size aircraft's construction and the schedule for future flights have not been disclosed. However, Cui Kai stated that the new hypersonic jets "could carry the same number of passengers or cargo as current aircraft," according to La Stampa.
This development comes as other nations are also making strides in supersonic aviation. NASA recently unveiled its supersonic X-59 aircraft, unofficially dubbed 'Son of Concorde,' which is being developed by Lockheed Martin at a cost of $247.5 million and is capable of flying at a speed of 937 miles per hour, as reported by Mail Online.
Meanwhile, the U.S. company Boom Technology is working on its own supersonic craft, called Overture. The XB-1, a scaled-down prototype of Overture, has recently completed its ninth test flight as part of efforts to build successors to the iconic British supersonic jet, Concorde.
China aims to create a small fleet of crewed hypersonic aircraft capable of reaching any place on Earth in a few hours by 2035, according to La Stampa. The results announced by Cui Kai's team are a step further towards this goal.
The Concorde, which was operated from 1976 until 2003, was one of only two supersonic transport aircraft operated commercially. It had a maximum speed of Mach 2.04, which is over twice the speed of sound, as reported by Mail Online. However, the Concorde was retired due to high fuel costs, noise concerns, and a preference for lower prices over speed.
By overcoming the limitations that plagued earlier supersonic aircraft, China's new design could usher in a new era of superfast passenger travel. Developing technologies that can remain stable at supersonic speeds while reducing costs still requires more time and research, but the recent successful test flight signifies a significant step forward.
This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq