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Civil Aircraft Breaks Sound Barrier for First Time Since Concorde

New Zealand manufacturer Dawn Aerospace achieves supersonic flight with its Mk-II Aurora, which is the first civil aircraft in decades to achieve the feat.

Tuesday, November 19, 2024 at 03:48 PM ET

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A pilot cam captures the moment Dawn Aerospace’s Mk-II Aurora reached its apogee of 82,500 feet, high enough to see the curvature of the Earth. [Courtesy: Dawn Aerospace]

Key Takeaways:

Dawn Aerospace's Mk-II Aurora demonstrator successfully achieved supersonic flight (Mach 1.1) last week, marking the first time a civil aircraft has broken the sound barrier since Concorde's retirement in 2003.
The Mk-II Aurora also set new records for climb rate, ascending to 82,500 feet, and is being developed to fly to the edge of space multiple times a day.
This achievement sets the stage for Dawn's future goals, including the Mk-III orbital vehicle and the newly established Dawn Hypersonics business unit, which aims to advance international hypersonic flight (Mach 5+).

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In 2003, British Airways and Air France retired Concorde—history’s only successful supersonic airliner. More than two decades later, a civil aircraft has broken the sound barrier once again.

Dawn Aerospace, the developer of what it describes as a rocket-powered spaceplane, on Tuesday announced it flew its Mk-II Aurora demonstrator faster than the speed of sound during a test mission last week. The New Zealand-based manufacturer is gunning to be the first to fly an aircraft to the edge of space—about 62 miles above the Earth—twice in one day.

Jack Daleo

Jack is a staff writer covering advanced air mobility, including everything from drones to unmanned aircraft systems to space travel—and a whole lot more. He spent close to two years reporting on drone delivery for FreightWaves, covering the biggest news and developments in the space and connecting with industry executives and experts. Jack is also a basketball aficionado, a frequent traveler and a lover of all things logistics.