Many of us grew up with stories of the Concorde, the supersonic passenger jet that could cross the Atlantic in the time it takes to watch The Godfather. The Concorde was a commercial failure, and was decommissioned 13 years ago. But now billionaire mogul Sir Richard Branson says his company, Virgin, will partner with Boom to succeed where the Concorde failed. And this time, says Branson, tickets will be affordable. Though as a billionaire, notes The Guardian, Branson uses the term “affordable” very loosely.
Virgin has commissioned ten planes to be built, which will be able to travel from New York to London in just three and a half hours. And a ticket will “only” cost you $5,000. That’s far too steep for mere mortals, but it is an improvement on the Concorde, a seat on which cost $20,000.
The new planes will have 40 seats. Every passenger will get a view of the curvature of the earth as the plane cruises at 60,000 feet.