American Airlines will purchase up to twenty Boom Supersonic Overture aircraft, both companies announced today. The airline has made an unrefundable deposit for this. American has also taken options on forty additional aircraft. United Airlines (35) and Japan Airlines (20) previously ordered the supersonic passenger plane.

Boom unveiled a new and final production design of the Overture at the Farnborough Airshow last month. The aircraft can carry 65 to 80 passengers and flies twice as fast as current scheduled flights. The Overture, which has to fly entirely on sustainable aviation fuel, will have a top speed of 2082 kilometers per hour (mach 1.7). The flight range is 4,250 nautical miles, just under 8,000 kilometers.

According to Boom's latest prediction, the first test aircraft will be delivered in 2025 and the Overture should carry the first passengers in 2029. It remains to be seen whether these deadlines will be met: for example, no engine manufacturer has yet been selected.

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* Origin: AVIATION ECHO HQ (2:292/854)