To travel from New York to London in just 3.5 hours?

To fly faster than the speed of sound and so high as to see the curvature of the Earth?

Supersonic travel is making a return, except this time without the big boom.

NASA’s new X-59 jet can break the sound barrier without shattering ears.
It’s a future where supersonic flights don’t cause mass disruption, and intercontinental travel takes only a couple of hours. 

This is a story about speed, science, and what happens when aerospace innovation finally goes quiet.

For 50 years, supersonic air travel has remained a dream after the termination of the Concord program.

When the Concorde flew, its thunderous boom could rattle entire neighborhoods. That’s why supersonic flights were banned over land in most countries. Since supersonic travel available only on sea was not profitable enough, the program was soon terminated in 2003.

But NASA’s X-59 QueSST (Quiet Supersonic Technology) changes the game.

Instead of a loud boom, the new technology creates a sound more like a car door slamming, something people on the ground barely notice.

Here’s how:

NASA is collaborating with Lockheed Martin to develop and test the X-59 in real-world conditions, with the ultimate goal of flying over U.S. cities to gather public feedback. If people on the ground barely hear it, the FAA could lift the ban on supersonic flights over land.

That alone unlocks a whole new market.

NASA isn’t alone.

Boom Supersonic, a Colorado-based startup, is developing Overture, a commercial supersonic airliner slated for commercial flights as soon as 2029. American Airlines and United have already placed their orders.

Boom is also building a dedicated manufacturing facility in Greensboro, North Carolina, with production expected to start in 2026.

Meanwhile, the Atlanta-based startup Hermeus is developing hypersonic jets that target speeds of Mach 5. With $100M+ in defense contracts and backing from the U.S. Air Force, they’re focused on both commercial and military applications.

But the X-59 remains the first real test of the “quiet” part of supersonic travel; without it, regulators won’t move.

This isn’t just about science, it’s about public belief and trust.

We often think of NASA as the space agency, but its mission also extends to air travel.
Its goal? Make aviation faster, safer, quieter, and cleaner.

The X-59 could:

Boom Supersonic and NASA aren’t competing; they’re two sides of the same leap: proving that fast and quiet can coexist.

We’re not just talking about shorter flights. We’re talking about reshaping global mobility.

Despite all the excitement, supersonic air travel is still years away from becoming mainstream. Realistically, commercial tickets won’t be available until the late 2030s at the earliest.

But right now, the X-59 is being prepared for its first test flight, not as a commercial aircraft, but as a testbed for the technology that could make quiet supersonic flight possible. That’s why it doesn’t look like a typical airliner.

If the X-59 performs as quietly as designed, NASA plans to begin community overflight tests across the U.S. between late 2025 and early 2026.

If that works?

Regulations will change.
Companies will build faster.
And your next flight could be twice as fast, with half the noise.

We used to ask: “Can we fly faster than sound?” But now the question is, “Can we do it without anyone noticing?”

The answer lies in the technology being developed right now at NASA and other companies throughout this decade.

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For a more detailed overview on the topic in video format, visit Cleo Abram’s video.