The Virgin Group has abandoned its order for jets from Boom Supersonic, reports The Telegraph. As per the report, the Virgin Group allowed its options for Boom Supersonic’s Overture passenger jet to lapse. The report also says that the Virgin Group never had a firm agreement with Boom over the order.
In an announcement made in January 2019, Boom Supersonic had received $100 million in a Series B investment round and claimed that Virgin Group and Japan Airlines had pre-ordered a combination of 30 Overture airliners. However, there was no official press release from Virgin Group confirming the order.
The Partners page on the Boom Supersonic website mentions American Airlines, United Airlines, and Japan Airlines as airline partners.
Boom Supersonic also revealed that Spain-based Aernnova and Aciturri would manufacture the wing and empennage for the Overture, respectively, while Leonardo will build the fuselage and system integration for the supersonic aircraft. The announcement was made during the recently held Paris Air Show. Boom Supersonic also clarified that the Overture’s order book stood at 130 aircraft.
“Virgin Galactic’s options from a 2016 agreement ended in 2020 at which point Boom Supersonic and Virgin mutually decided to allow the options to expire. Boom’s commercial order book continues to stand at 130 aircraft, including 35 orders with non-refundable deposit and 95 pre-orders from United Airlines, American Airlines, and Japan Airlines. We continue to maintain a strong relationship with Virgin and look forward to continued discussions with their team about sustainable supersonic travel,” Boom Supersonic spokesperson replied to Telegraph.
Although Virgin has not announced any plans to acquire the Overture, sources have claimed that the company is still interested in the concept of supersonic sustainable air travel.
Boom had experienced a similar setback a few years back when Rolls-Royce launched an agreement with Boom to advance the engine design of the Overture in 2020 but backed from the agreement last year citing reason that supersonic air travel was not a priority for the company.
Meanwhile Boom recently made an announcement delaying Overture’s commercial rollout by almost another year. Currently, the aircraft is not expected to perform its first flight until 2027 while its entry into service is expected to be by 2030.
The Overture can accommodate 65-80 passengers and will travel at a speed of Mach 1.7, equal to flying at approximately 1,300 miles per hour. Boom has reportedly raised approximately $150 million from investors and venture capitalists.