‘Groundbreaking’ flights six-times faster than speed of sound

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Written by Super User

Category: Innovations

Published: 11 October 2024

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TEXAS, USA - An aerospace company has unveiled a new hypersonic engine which it says makes a “major breakthrough” in high-speed flight.

Venus Aerospace, a Texas-based company focused on making hypersonic travel a reality, has announced they are producing an advanced propulsion engine that could power high-speed vehicles, including drones and aircraft.

Hypersonic technology is not a new phenomenon – it has been used in ballistic missiles, space expeditions, as well as Nasa’s experimental X-planes.

However, the introduction of hypersonic travel into commercial flights has yet to be propelled into reality, whereas supersonic ventures such as the British-French Concorde have made it into the air but not flown since 2003.

The company hopes that the Venus Detonation Ramjet 2,000lb Thrust Engine, also known as VDR2, will enable vehicles to travel long distances at high altitudes, all while achieving Mach speeds – a rate that is faster than the speed of sound.

Venus Aerospace said that the VDR2 would offer a single engine that can go as fast as Mach 6, which is 3,600mph.

The company says that the engine should be able to sustain efficient cruising at Mach 4 on journeys of up to 5,000 miles, and will be designed for take-off and landing at various airports with a 30-minute turnaround time.

The ”groundbreaking” product was unveiled at Up.Summit, a gathering in the US state of Arkansas for investors and industry leaders in the transport sector.

Andrew Duggleby, the co-founder of Venus Aerospace, spoke at the summit, saying that the 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."

Eric Briggs, Velontra’s chief operating officer, said: "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,"

"We couldn’t think of a better partner than Venus. Rocketry pioneers in their own right and ready to tackle the hard problems, we are eager to fly the same path with them."

Both Venus Aerospace and Velontra said that by combining their technologies, they hope to take steps towards high-speed flight in both the commercial and defence sectors.

Venus Aerospace hope to test its engine, using a drone, by 2025. But production of its first hypersonic commercial plane, the Venus Stargazer M400, may not begin until the 2030s.

The 3,461-mile flight between London and New York that takes, on average, eight hours could be achieved in under an hour at Mach 6 speeds.

Yet it is unclear when a fully realised hypersonic commercial plane will become a reality.

Simon Calder, travel correspondent at The Independent – and one of a dwindling number of people who flew on Concorde – said: “I look forward to travelling to the hyperport using my personal jetpack. But perhaps not for a few more decades.

“The absurd costs – environmental as well as financial – involved in flying faster than the speed of sound make it extremely unlikely that London-New York in an hour will be a reality any time in this half-century.”

This bus in Oman is powered by dates- Watch video

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Written by Super User

Category: Innovations

Published: 28 May 2024

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MUSCAT - This bus in Oman is powered by dates and it is the first of its kind in the Middle East.

The bus made its inaugural journey in December 2022

Watch the video

https://www.weforum.org/videos/oman-bus-dates/?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2822674_Prod-Si-WeeklyNewsletterV6&utm_term=&emailType=Strategic%20Intelligence%20Weekly&ske=MDAxMFgwMDAwNEJkc0xoUUFK

First tests for flying taxis on the horizon by 2026

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Written by Super User

Category: Innovations

Published: 18 March 2024

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LONDON - Britain’s first electric flying taxis are set to take to the air in test flights in 2026 according to the government’s new plan for aviation.

The Future of Flight Action Plan published on Monday paves the way for flying taxis to go into widespread use in 2030.

While the initial tests will use pilots, the electric aircraft will eventually be pilotless.

The plan is intended to speed up the adoption of aviation technology “once confined to the realm of sci-fi”, according to the Department for Transport.

Small airfields and urban landing pads will also see a surge in activity from drones and electric air taxi-style aircraft.

So-called “vertiports” will be set up for electric aircraft that take off vertically, similarly to the Harrier jump-jet.

Other countries including China and the US have already tested similar all-electric aircraft designed for passenger flights but so far none have progressed beyond the prototype stage.

The government’s proposals also include increasing use of drones by the police and to make critical medical deliveries by the end of the decade.

Under the proposals, the current requirement that a user must be able to see a drone at all times while it is in the air would be dropped. It is hoped that the move to flying drones Beyond Visual Line of Sight will allow the aviation new technology sector to grow.

Aviation and technology minister Anthony Browne said: “Cutting-edge battery technology will revolutionise transport as we know it.

“This plan will make sure we have the infrastructure and regulation in place to make it a reality.”

“From flying taxis to emergency service drones, we’re making sure the UK is at the forefront of this dramatic shift in transportation, improving people’s lives and boosting the economy.”

On Monday, Mr Browne will visit the Bristol headquarters of Vertical Aerospace, a flying taxi company backed by the founder of Ovo Energy, Stephen Fitzpatrick.

The firm has been trialling a five-seater piloted air-taxi designed to fly at speeds of up to 200mph. Last year a prototype crashed while under test at Kemble airport in the Cotswolds.

Public trials
A number of public trials have already taken place under special conditions for drone deliveries but the government wants to press ahead with making routine use of the new technologies.

Mr Fitzpatrick, founder and chief executive of Vertical Aerospace, said: “With government and business working together, we can unleash the huge economic, environmental and social benefits of zero emissions flight globally.”

Sophie O’Sullivan, the Civil Aviation Authority’s head of future safety and innovation, said: “Aviation stands on the cusp of its next, potentially biggest, revolution since the invention of the jet engine.

“Drones, [electric vertical takeoff and landing craft] and other different vehicles have the potential to change transportation options forever.

“Our role in this bright future of aviation will be enabling technological advances and providing regulatory support, while ensuring that all forms of new aviation technology enjoy the same high safety standards as traditional aviation.”

Current uses of drone technology include widespread use by police forces to tackle violent crime and anti-social behaviour.

In July 2023, a West Midlands Police drone team identified two offenders and another suspect at a speed and distance that would have taken ground officers hours to track down, the force said.

In the NHS, drone service provider Skyfarer has partnered with University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust and Medical Logistics UK to test drones to deliver surgical implants and pathology samples between sites, cutting delivery times by up to 70 per cent.

Private pilots’ associations have raised concerns about the drone roll-out, saying future craft must have safety features built in so they can “see and avoid” other aeroplanes.

Current drone trials see drones operating in areas of the sky that are closed off to all other aircraft for safety reasons, reducing areas available for light aeroplanes and helicopters to fly in.