If you’re anything like us, a trip Down Under has long been on the bucket list. Hanging 10 on the Sydney surf, throwing a couple shrimps on the barbie and sipping on a flat white? Yep, we could get used to the Aussie lifestyle.
The only downside to catching a flight to Oz is, well, the flight. The roughly 7,000km journey typically takes anywhere from 22 to 27 hours by plane, which is a daunting prospect.
But UK-Aus flights could soon be cut down to around a tenth of that time. That’s because plans for a new hypersonic space plane are on the horizon.
The Invictus aircraft, which is being developed by the European Space Agency (ESA), would travel more than five times the speed of sound, meaning it could get from London to Sydney in just three hours. It would take off like any normal plane, but once airbound, it would fly to the edge of the atmosphere (around 80,000ft) from where it could jet across the globe tout suite.
Invictus would be the first supersonic commercial aircraft since Concorde, which was axed in 2003. Concordes could reach Sydney in 17 hours, but needed to make multiple stops to refuel along the way.
Before you pack your flip-flops and order that Crocodile Dundee-style cork hat off Amazon, we should warn you that the Invictus is a fair way off actually taking off. The new plane is still in its design stage, meaning it’ll be years before we can board.
The initial phase of its development is expected to be completed this year. Testing of smaller-scale engines is scheduled for 2027, with further trials booked for later this decade. The first flight is estimated to take place by 2034 at a slower speed, followed by testing at full speed by 2036.
Initially, the hypersonic aircraft will be used to launch satellites into space. If its first mission is successful, it could mean we see the same technology used for rapid international travel.
Gordon Stevenson, a director of aerospace testing site Spaceport Machrihanish, said: ‘You could be in Sydney, Australia in three hours. It depends on the speed at which it flies and the success of the technology, but it would be amazing wouldn’t it?’
James Cornish, space business development manager at Frazer-Nash, which is the Invictus aircraft’s prime contractor, said: ‘While it is not a passenger aircraft, the technologies it proves could ultimately underpin much faster long-haul travel in future civil platforms.’
Did you see that British Airways is launching direct flights from London to the world’s best city?
Plus: London will soon get direct trains to Switzerland.
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