New plane promises New York in 90 minutes
Plans for a new hypersonic jet that flies at four times the speed of sound will be unveiled in Paris on Monday.
European aircraft maker EADS will announce its plans for the jet at the Paris Air Show which opens today at Le Bourget.
The jet, currently named ZEHST (Zero Emission HyperSonic Transportation) could fly up to 100 people at over 3,000 miles per hour. This would cut the current 11 hour flight from Paris to Tokyo to just two and a half hours.
Flying at 20 miles above the Earth, just outside its atmosphere, it would be almost completely non-polluting through its mix of biofuel, hydrogen and water.
There will be a wait for those hoping to take advantage of the new high speed service. A first test flight is not expected until 2030 and commercial flights in 2050.
EADS will be hoping that the hypersonic jet will overshadow the disappointments it's faced at the annual air show this year.
Yesterday, plans for a demonstration flight by the large Airbus A380 were scuppered when the aircraft's wing tip hit a building. A military plane, the A400M, will also not be flying after engine problems were discovered.
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