Japan Plans Quieter, Cleaner Concorde Successor

from FlightGlobal:

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FARNBOROUGH 2008: Japan plans quieter, cleaner Concorde successor

Jaxa, Japan’s Aerospace Exploration Agency is showing visitors a glimpse of the future with a scale model of its Silent Supersonic Technology Demonstration (S3TD) programme aircraft.

The S3TD is an experimental demonstrator looking at the technologies that will be needed for any future supersonic successor to Concorde. JAXA’s goal is to produce an environmentally-friendly aircraft that has a quieter sonic boom and a high lift-to-drag ratio at its Mach 2 cruising speed. It is also aiming at a 12% weight reduction compared with Concorde and an overall noise reduction of 3db using noise shielding.

The project is currently at the design stage, having gone through an extensive feasibility study. Flight tests are likely to take place in 2012 or 2013.

The demonstrator will be unmanned and will make use of composite materials throughout. S3TD will fly under “full autonomous flight control”, steering automatically. JAXA completed similar flight tests in 2005 using a scaled experimental supersonic transport (SST) at Woomera test range in Australia.

http://www.flightglobal.com/assets/g...x?ItemID=24142

An earlier 2002 test ended in failure after the demonstrator spiralled out of control, hit the ground and exploded. The crash was later blamed on a computer problem.
In that experiment, the aircraft was launched by rocket and used parachutes and airbags for landing. In the S3TD tests, the aircraft will take off, manoeuvre, and land automatically to prove full autonomous flight control technology.

Jaxa is convinced that this century will eventually become the age of the supersonic passenger aircraft. Its solution could pave the way, solving the problem of Concorde’s sonic boom, which restricted its use to routes over oceans. Concorde also emitted high level of emissions, including NOx – though its Olympus engines were based on 1950s technology. Efforts to reduce engine emissions have become even more front of mind over the past few years.

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ABOUT TIME!!

I remember when Reagan tried to push a hypersonic airliner development project. He wanted the "Big Three" to come up with a aircraft that could fly from NYC to Tokyo within two hours. It's a shame we're still trying to figure a way of going supersonic...we really are decades behind where we should be.

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Originally Posted by Idlewild

...we really are decades behind where we should be.

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i remember not too long after concorde was retired john travolta was giving an interview on tv. his comments were to the effact that we as a populationa and aviation as an industry are regressing with the retirement of that airplane. aviation, from it's beginning has always been trying to go faster and higher. now, well nobody cares anymore as long as they don't pay more than $50 for a ticket and have a TV screen glued to thier face. i digress, but mr travolta was 100% right.

I fully agree with what you all say.

In Nov 2003 when Concorde was grounded i was utterly heart broken, every summer my brain automatically thinks of going to Heathrow to see Concorde but then i realise she's not flying any more......... :( :(

I heard about JAXA a few years back, when the 2005 test failed some said due to "economics" no one will ever build one as the bean counters and tree huggers won't allow ever it and the failed tests prove it won't work.

I really hope the tree huggers and bean counters are wrong.

When developing new aircraft and spacecraft nothing ever goes right first time, there are always problems which need to be ironed out before one can fly with people.

Japan doesn't have an airplane firm as big as Airbus or Boeing so i find hard to believe they will ever build one, i guess they will do the research and licence the results to Airbus or Boeing.

I'm now 40 1/2 and i doubt in my life time we will see "son of Concorde", it will happen in 40-60 years time but it won't happen in life time.

In 1979 before Concorde's production lines where scrapped, there where plans to make Concorde B, which would have been a bigger, better and greener version of Concorde.

The engines used on Concorde B would have been souped up and more fuel efficient Concorde engines which would not have needed after burners to reach mach 1.

One of the last Concordes to roll off the production line was G-BOAG (The Concorde in Seattle Boeing Museum and my backup Concorde). G-BOAG was lighter than all the earlier Concordes, as during its life Concorde was being optimised and tweaked to make it better, G-BOAG was the taste of things to come.

But the 1980s Thatcher government scrapped it all + apart from BA and Air France the airlines thought Concorde was an pretty joke (Until BA proved Concorde could make real money).

In 2003 VIPs like John Travolta should have written to BA, Air France and Airbus and expressed their concerns but as far as i know they never did.

Since 1979 we only have one generation of Concorde.

If like the 1970 Boeing 747, Concorde had been allowed to evolve the 2009 Concorde would have been more fuel efficient and greener than before, but now we will never know....... we can just dream.

In 1998 Airbus had plans to make the AST-Alliance
:-
http://www.aviation-news.co.uk/concordeChronology.html

Scroll down until you see a drawing of it.

But it was scrapped.

I think the success of the supersonic bizjets currently being designed will play the biggest role in deciding whether or not we see supersonic airliners in our lifetimes.

The SST-bizjet is ok and could act as test bed to develop techologies to be used on airliner class SSTs, but compared to Concorde the SST-bizjet will carry a hand full of people and even with its greener engines mile for mile it will be more polluting than Concorde.

Concorde carried 100 people at mach 2 for around 3500 miles, The SST-bizjet will carry 10-12 people at mach 2 for 3500 miles so based on people carried per mile it will more polluting than Concorde ever was.

The Boeing Sonic cruiser http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_Sonic_Cruiser was the best option as stop gap between Concorde and "son of Concorde" and the design could have easily evolved in to mach 2 airliner.

But as usual the tree huggers and bean counters said NO..........

Thats the really frustrating thing, we have the brains and know how to make a 747 size "son of Concorde" now, but the tree huggers and bean counters keep on saying NO, so we are still going backwards.

Once new "sons of Concorde" are made then the real break through in technology will happen and people will start to realise what Concorde was all about.

Think about it being able to fly
:-
LA to Sydney in 2-3 hrs
LA to Tokyo in 2-3 hrs
Heathrow to JFK in 1 hr
Heathrow to Tokyo in 2-3 hrs
Heathrow to New Dehli in 2 hrs
Heathrow to South Africa in 2-3 hrs
JFK to South Africa in 2-3 hrs.
JFK to LA in 1-2 hrs

Thats where the real power of Concorde and SSTs comes in to play, but right now the public can't see that........

There are no sons of Concorde.

Concorde was a true one-off and fantastic for several reasons. Now only did it afford people more time, but it brought together 2 countries working toward a greater good.

Nothing really succeeds it and that is truly odd considering its the only thing that has not gotten better . All technology is replaced by newer technology and this is one case where it hasnt.

I think Gotham Spotter is spot on.

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Originally Posted by mirrodie

Nothing really succeeds it and that is truly odd considering its the only thing that has not gotten better . All technology is replaced by newer technology and this is one case where it hasnt.

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Yep. The scramjet engine tech that would make JFK-Tokyo in 2 hours possible is finally being developed...for missiles. Someday it'll probably be made available for private use, but even then, is it possible to make a passenger ride comfortable at Mach 30?

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Originally Posted by mirrodie

There are no sons of Concorde.

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I use the term "son of Concorde" as a complimentry term to future SST Airliners which would take the next step forward for that class of airliner.

I call the Airbus A380 "son of 747" as although it was never made by Boeing it is the next step forward for that class of airliner.

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that is truly odd considering its the only thing that has not gotten better . All technology is replaced by newer technology and this is one case where it hasnt.

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I fully agree with you :)

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Originally Posted by GothamSpotter

but even then, is it possible to make a passenger ride comfortable at Mach 30?

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You can ask the Space shuttle riders. They orbit at mach 25, given or take ;)

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Originally Posted by GothamSpotter

is it possible to make a passenger ride comfortable at Mach 30?

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People thought like that about mach 2, but on Concorde the pilots very gently accelerated the plane to mach 2 and you didn't feel mach 1 or mach 2 at all.

Mach 30 flights would have to be based on the same principles.

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Originally Posted by mirrodie

You can ask the Space shuttle riders. They orbit at mach 25, given or take ;)

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They do, but there's no turbulence up there.