The US Department of Transportation and the FAA issued a Final Rule (PDF) on January 6 2021 to facilitate the safe development of civil supersonic aircraft. The rule streamlines and clarifies procedures to obtain FAA approval for supersonic flight testing in the United States. The rule will help ensure that companies developing these aircraft clearly understand the process for gaining FAA approval to conduct flight testing, which is a key step in ultimately bringing their products to market.
FAA Announces Final Rule on Civil Supersonic Flight Development
Key Takeaways:
- The US Department of Transportation and FAA issued a Final Rule on January 6, 2021, to streamline and clarify procedures for obtaining FAA approval for civil supersonic flight testing in the United States.
- This rule aims to facilitate safe innovation in supersonic aircraft development by clarifying the application process for companies seeking to conduct test flights.
- The regulation explicitly maintains the long-standing general prohibition on routine supersonic flights over land and mandates thorough environmental impact analyses for any authorized test flights.
- Several companies, including Boom Supersonic and Lockheed Martin, are developing supersonic aircraft that will be subject to this new FAA testing framework.
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