Sydney to London in 3 hours: The future of commercial flights?
Imagine hopping onto a plane and stepping off three hours later on the other side of the world.
It sounds like something out of a sci-fi film, but thanks to new aviation technology currently being developed, a three-hour London to Sydney flight could be not just a possibility, but the norm.
The Invictus hypersonic plane could get from Sydney to London in 3 hours. European Space Agency
The Invictus aircraft, which is about to undergo testing in the UK, would travel at five times the speed of sound.
The planes would still take off horizontally like a normal aircraft, but would then zoom to the edge of the atmosphere, from where it can speedily head to long-haul destinations.
Initially designed for satellite deployment, the initial concept craft will not take passengers. But it could help pave the way to hypersonic commercial flights becoming the normal way we travel.
Gordon Stevenson, a director of Spaceport Machrihanish, which is in the running to launch the first flights, said: “You could be in Sydney, Australia in three hours. It depends on the speed at which it flies and the success of the technology, but it would be amazing wouldn’t it?”
So, how realistic are these superfast long-haul flights?
An aviation expert told nine.com.au that while “technically plausible”, don’t expect to book a three-hour flight to Europe any time soon.
“There is a very large difference between demonstrating a hypersonic test aircraft and operating a safe, reliable, commercially viable passenger service between London and Sydney,” said Dr Tony Stanton, Consultant Director at Strategic Air.
He added that the flights are more of a long-term technology ambition for the aviation industry.
Qantas' new Project Sunrise flights would take 20 to 22 hours for non-stop journeys from Sydney to London. Qantas
While commercial passengers have flown supersonically before on Concorde planes, the issue with the proposed new aircraft is the operating environment, he said.
“The aircraft has to deal with extreme heating, very high structural and propulsion loads, complex fuel and thermal management issues, and demanding flight safety requirements.”
There are a lot of safety boxes that would need to be checked before these aircraft could be deemed suitable for passengers.
Tony added that the costs would be prohibitive and the on-board passenger numbers would be small. So if the concept did get off the ground (literally), it’d be more suited to a business jet, government, defence or very high-end premium travel model.
But though three-hour London to Sydney flights might not be coming soon, the new developments do signify potential changes coming to the aviation industry. The research going into these aircraft could contribute to advances in commercial planes, and lead to more efficient flying.
