Delta wings

Billionaire Sir Richard Branson, who owns the Virgin empire, has signed a deal with Rolls Royce “to collaborate in designing and developing engine propulsion technology for high speed commercial aircraft.” The new aircraft is described as a certified Mach 3 model with delta wings. This design enables an aircraft to develop a top speed almost three times the speed of sound.

Turbojet engine

The “heart” of a new aircraft is a unique turbojet engine that will ensure a flight at an incredible distance. Earlier, Rolls Royce created and successfully implemented the idea of a turbojet engine in Concorde, the legendary British–French turbojet-powered supersonic passenger airliner. However, the new engine is expected to propel a plane with even a faster speed than Concord.    

Small passenger capacity

The new aircraft is designed for a small seating capacity for 9 to 19 people. The unique commercial aircraft will be able to fly at an altitude above 18,300 meters (60,000 feet).  

Ambitious plans

Interestingly, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Richard Branson is forging ahead with his bold plans in space tourism. Certainly, the economic downturn has disrupted such plans and posed a challenge to his business empire. Nevertheless, he is faithful to his idea of launching regular commercial space flights. The first space passengers will fly on board an aircraft of the SpaceShipTwo series. They will be provided with the opportunity to watch the Earth at an altitude of 100 kilometers.