Comac C949: China unveils quiet supersonic jet with 50% longer range than Concorde
The first details of C949, a supersonic airliner project, have been quietly unveiled by Chinese state-owned  giant Comac, signalling its ambitions to dominate the skies with the radical new jet that could redefine global air travel.
In a recent academic paper, Comac  revealed the blueprint of a 1.6-Mach airliner designed to fly further and much more quietly than the retired Concorde – a feat that could position China at the forefront of a 21st century supersonic renaissance.
A team led by Wu Dawei, Comac’s award-winning , said in a March 14 paper published in the journal Acta Aeronautica Sinica that the project aimed to achieve what engineers have chased for decades: a 50 per cent range boost over the Concorde (11,000km or 6,800 miles vs 7,200km or 4,500 miles) while slashing sonic booms to 83.9 perceived level in decibels (PLdB), comparable to the noise level of a hairdryer.