Are we about to witness a change to the way in which we travel? It’s certainly within the realm of possibilities.
Joby Air Taxis could potentially enter the equation in the congested NYC, while the hypersonic jet from Venus Aerospace could get New Yorkers across the pond — a.k.a. the Atlantic Ocean — to London in just one hour. (We’ve had subway rides that are longer than that.)
The Texan aerospace company is currently working on the Stargazer, a high-speed aircraft that moves three times faster than the Concorde at about six times the speed of sound and in much higher altitudes (likely over 110,000 feet). Venus Aerospace debuted the engine for the plane, titled the Venus Detonation Ramjet 2,000-pound Thrust Engine — VDR2 for short — in conjunction with Velontra at the Up.Summit innovation event in Bentonville, Arkansas, this October.
So, are we ready for takeoff? Not quite. Per the event, the VDR2 will take flight in Venus’ hypersonic flight test drone in 2025, but the wheels are in motion.
“We can’t wait to dig in, make the first one fly, and ultimately perfect an engine concept that has lived mostly in textbooks but never as a production unit in the air,” Velontra’s Chief Operating Officer, Eric Briggs, said according to a press release.
Likewise, Venus Aerospace CTO Dr. Andrew Duggleby said, “This engine makes the hypersonic economy a reality. We are excited to partner with Velontra to achieve this revolution in high speed flight, given their expertise in high-speed air combustion.”
In the meantime, we’ll just have to plan our Thanksgiving travel as usual and avoid the worst airports for holiday travel as best as possible. But once the Stargazer becomes a reality, you best believe we’re reaching for those passports.