Forty-Five Minutes from London to New York? This Jet Aims to Shatter the Sky Silently

There are no commercial supersonic jets flying passengers today. Not one. Two ambitious projects are still trying to build momentum, but real-world flights remain years away. Now on the horizon appears A-HyM, a conceptual aircraft that promises to carry you across the Atlantic in less time than it takes to finish lunch. Spanish aerospace visionary Óscar Viñals recently revealed the design, a jet capable of cruising at Mach 7.3, over 9,000 kilometers per hour, while transporting 170 passengers at an altitude of 30 kilometers, far above where even the clouds bother to show up.

A-HyM is not just another fast tube with wings. This is a machine loaded with technologies more at home in science fiction than commercial aviation. It flies on hydrogen, positioning itself as an eco-conscious rock star in the stratosphere. Its propulsion system combines turbofan, ramjet and rotating detonation engines into a hybrid that can handle everything from takeoff to hypersonic speed.

Reportedly, it achieves this velocity without the deafening sonic boom. A-HyM is engineered to mute its own roar, a revolutionary feature that could allow future jets to streak across densely populated areas without shattering windows or nerves.

The materials alone are enough to make science editors swoon. Titanium, carbon fiber, high-temperature ceramic composites and of course graphene. The fuselage will reach over 1,000 degrees Celsius during flight, but A-HyM is built to handle the heat like a Spaniard biting into a chili pepper.

The passenger experience promises to be just as unprecedented. A-HyM offers panoramic virtual displays that stream real-time views, entertainment and flight data. There are no windows in the cockpit either. Pilots will rely on holograms and augmented reality. It is less like air travel and more like flying through a video game.