View source for Boeing Sonic Cruiser

{{short description|Concept high-subsonic jet airliner with delta wing-canard configuration}}
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{{Infobox aircraft
 |name= Sonic Cruiser
 |image=Boeing Sonic Cruiser 3-view.svg
 |caption= Boeing Sonic Cruiser (based on 2001 patent)
 |type= [[Jet airliner]]
 |manufacturer= [[Boeing Commercial Airplanes]]
 |designer=
 |first_flight=
 |introduction = none; originally planned for 2006–2008<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/5212/is-the-future-in-a380-or-sonic-cruiser%3F-(may-3).html |title=A380 or Sonic Cruiser: Which is the Future? |date=May 2, 2001 |author=Forecast International/DMS |work=Defense-Aerospace |access-date=15 February 2019 |archive-date=15 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190215215742/http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/5212/is-the-future-in-a380-or-sonic-cruiser%3F-(may-3).html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=Rumsey-02/>
 |retired=
 |status= Proposed design, canceled
 |primary_user=
 |more_users=
 |produced=
 |number_built=
 |unit cost=
 |developed_from =
 |variants=
}}

The '''Boeing Sonic Cruiser''' was a concept [[jet airliner]] with a [[delta wing]]–[[canard (aeronautics)|canard]] configuration.  It was distinguished from conventional airliners by its delta wing and high-[[subsonic aircraft|subsonic]]/[[transonic]] cruising speed of up to [[Mach number|Mach]] 0.98.  [[Boeing]] first proposed it in 2001, but [[airline]]s generally preferred lower operating costs over higher speed. Boeing ended the Sonic Cruiser project in December 2002 and shifted to the slower (Mach 0.85) but more fuel-efficient 7E7 (later named [[Boeing 787 Dreamliner|787 Dreamliner]]) airliner.

==Design and development==
{{quote box |align=right |width=25em |quote=As well as wanting more direct flights, passengers have demonstrated a preference for flights that take less time and aeroplane configurations that enhance comfort. It’s just common sense: people want to go where they want to go, when they want to go, how they want to go. Boeing’s answer to the demand for faster flights, more direct flights and increased comfort is the Sonic Cruiser. |author={{pad|0.5em}}—&nbsp;Peter Rumsey, Director of New Airplane Product Development |source=''Ingenia'', February 2002<ref name=Rumsey-02>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.ingenia.org.uk/Ingenia/Articles/7faf0082-7901-4aeb-9c9e-3ef6a039bf11 |title=Changing the way we fly: Boeing's new Sonic Cruiser |author=Rumsey, Peter |date=February 2002 |issue=11 |magazine=ingenia |access-date=15 February 2019 |archive-date=16 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190216035205/https://www.ingenia.org.uk/Ingenia/Articles/7faf0082-7901-4aeb-9c9e-3ef6a039bf11 |url-status=dead }}</ref>}}

The Sonic Cruiser was born from one of numerous outline research and development projects that began in the 1990s at Boeing with the goal to look at potential designs for a possible new near-sonic or supersonic airliner.<ref name=PI-010420>{{cite news |author=Wallace, James |url=http://archives.californiaaviation.org/airport/msg14557.html |title=They said it would never fly but Boeing's 'Engineer X' proved them wrong |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304022542/http://archives.californiaaviation.org/airport/msg14557.html |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |publisher=californiaaviation.org |date=April 20, 2001}}</ref><ref name=AmazingSC>{{cite news |author=Taylor III, Alex |url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2002/12/09/333457/index.htm |title=Boeing's Amazing Sonic Cruiser: It was supposed to change the way the world flies. Instead the world changed |work=Fortune |date=December 9, 2002}}</ref><ref name=Haenggi_p83-6>Haenggi 2003, pp. 83–86.</ref> The Sonic Cruiser was publicly unveiled on March 29, 2001.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2001/q1/news_release_010329a.html |title=Boeing Focuses Commercial Airplanes Long-Range Product Strategy |date=March 29, 2001 |location=Seattle |publisher=Boeing |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030803144932/http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2001/q1/news_release_010329a.html |archive-date=August 3, 2003 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Boeing]] had recently withdrawn its proposed [[Boeing 747#747X and 747X Stretch|747X]] derivative from competition with the [[Airbus A380]] when not enough airline interest was forthcoming,<ref name=Norris-03/> and instead proposed the Sonic Cruiser as a completely different approach.<ref name=Haenggi_p83-6/> Instead of the A380's massive capacity, requiring a [[Spoke-hub distribution paradigm|hub and spoke]] model of operation, the Sonic Cruiser was designed for rapid [[point-to-point transit|point-to-point]] connections for 200 to 250 passengers.<ref name=Rumsey-02/><ref name=need_speed/> Critics stated that Boeing had timed its announcement in an attempt to distract from the launch of the A380.<ref name=Norris-03 />

Boeing's 2001 patent<ref name=US6575406B2/> detailed the breadth of delta wing-canard concepts studied, which included a supersonic variant with four engines capable of cruising at Mach 1.5 to 3.0,<ref>Figures 2–4, US Patent 6,575,406</ref> various tail, engine location, and inlet and outlet configurations,<ref>Figures 8–11 & 18–23, US Patent 6,575,406</ref> smaller supersonic and subsonic business jets,<ref>Figure 17, US Patent 6,575,406</ref> and what Boeing called a "modular" system, where the cruise speed could be changed from supersonic to near-sonic by an interchangeable nose;<ref>Figure 24, US Patent 6,575,406</ref> the "Sonic Cruiser" was a near-sonic variant.<ref>Figures 12–15, US Patent 6,575,406</ref> The origin has been traced back to 1995, with the formation of an internal Airplane Creation Process Strategy team, which had designed a plane code-named Project Glacier that strongly resembled the initial Sonic Cruiser drawings by fall 2000.<ref name=AmazingSC/> In early 2001, Boeing CEO [[Alan Mulally]] began privately publicizing the concept to potential customers, touting its improved speed at an efficiency similar to existing designs.<ref name=AmazingSC/>

[[Don Carty]] ([[American Airlines]]) and Sir [[Richard Branson]] ([[Virgin Atlantic]]) were openly enthusiastic for the Sonic Cruiser, and Branson expected to make a tentative order of three to six aircraft in May 2001.<ref name=Norris-03 /> The March 29, 2001 announcement was followed by a larger media event at the [[Paris Air Show#2001|Paris Air Show]] on June 19, where futurist [[John Naisbitt]] and Mulally praised the concept, unveiled as a {{frac|40}}-scale model.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/cult-sonic-cruiser-180956241/ |title=The Cult of the Sonic Cruiser |author=Sweetman, Bill |date=September 2015 |magazine=Air & Space Magazine |publisher=Smithsonian Institution |access-date=14 February 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |url=https://boeing.mediaroom.com/2001-06-19-Boeing-Unveils-the-Future-at-Paris-Air-Show |title=Boeing Unveils the Future at Paris Air Show |publisher=Boeing |access-date=14 February 2019}}</ref> ''[[Popular Science]]'' named the Sonic Cruiser to its list of the Best of What's New in 2001.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9v3Q9qSoxHEC&pg=PA42 |title=Best of What's New 2001: Boeing Pulls a Fast One |page=42 |date=December 2001 |magazine=Popular Science |access-date=15 February 2019}}</ref>

===Configurations===
{{quote box|align=right|width=25em|quote=The Sonic Cruiser is a brand-new class of flying machine. Every other commercial jet airplane has been a further refinement of the 707. |author={{pad|0.5em}}—&nbsp;Walt Gillette, general manager of the Sonic Cruiser program |source=''Boeing Frontiers'', July 2002<ref name=need_speed/>}}

Boeing continued to tweak the design through the summer 2001.<ref name=AmazingSC/> Initial sketches released to the public were highly conjectural. A [[patent drawing]] filed by Boeing in early 2001 put the baseline aircraft's dimensions at approximately {{convert|250|ft|m}} in length, with a wingspan of {{convert|164.9|ft|m}}.<ref name=US6575406B2>{{cite patent |url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US6575406B2/en |number=6,575,406&nbsp;B2 |title=Integrated and/or modular high-speed aircraft |inventor=Chester P. Nelson |assign=Boeing Co |pridate=January 19, 2001 |gdate=June 10, 2003 |status=Grant |country=US}}</ref> With a [[delta wing]] and [[canard (aeronautics)|canards]] arrangement, and flying just short of the speed of sound at [[Mach number|Mach]] 0.95–0.98 (about {{convert|650|mph|abbr=on}} at altitude), the Sonic Cruiser promised 15–20% faster speed than conventional airliners without the [[noise pollution]] caused by the [[sonic boom]] from supersonic travel. As an example, a flight using the Sonic Cruiser from London to Singapore was expected to be two hours shorter than one using a conventional airliner.<ref name=Rumsey-02/> In addition, the landing and takeoff noise was expected to meet [[Aircraft noise#Regulation|Stage 4 requirements]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.boeing.com/news/feature/concept/factsheet.html |title=Faster, Longer Range Boeing Commercial Jet |date=2001 |publisher=The Boeing Company |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010410011013/http://www.boeing.com/news/feature/concept/factsheet.html |archive-date=10 April 2001 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The aircraft was designed to fly at altitudes in excess of {{convert|40000|ft|m|abbr=on}} to avoid existing air traffic,<ref name=Rumsey-02/> with a range between {{convert|6000|and|10000|nmi|km|lk=on}}.<ref name=need_speed>{{cite magazine |author=Gunter, Lori |url=http://www.boeing.com/news/frontiers/archive/2002/july/i_ca2.html |title=The Need for Speed: Boeing's Sonic Cruiser team focuses on the future |magazine=Boeing Frontiers |date=July 2002}}</ref> Boeing estimated the Sonic Cruiser's [[fuel efficiency]] would be comparable to best performing twin-engine wide body airliners in 2002 on a per-passenger basis.<ref name=need_speed/><ref>{{cite press release |url=https://boeing.mediaroom.com/2002-07-22-Boeing-Sonic-Cruiser-Targets-Environmental-Performance |title=Boeing Sonic Cruiser Targets Environmental Performance |date=July 22, 2002 |publisher=Boeing |access-date=14 February 2019}}</ref>

Boeing intended to use advanced composite and titanium materials to reduce weight and further improve fuel efficiency.<ref name=AmazingSC/> In order to successfully build a commercial airplane with such a high advanced materials content (projected to be 60–70% of the airframe by weight), Boeing lined up a consortium of international partners with experience in aerostructures.<ref name=Norris-03 /> By the end of 2001, those materials were being applied to an aircraft in [[Boeing Yellowstone Project|Project Yellowstone]], a competing project using more conventional airplane designs.<ref name=AmazingSC/> That aircraft, being designed under Yellowstone as the replacement for the 757/767, was later announced as the 7E7, with "E" standing for "Efficient".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2004-03-28-0403280228-story.html |title=Resilient Mulally ready to ride success of Boeing's 7E7 jetliner |author=Allison, Melissa |date=March 28, 2004 |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |access-date=15 February 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3729657/ns/business-us_business/t/boeing-build-e-familiar-spot/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170221060307/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3729657/ns/business-us_business/t/boeing-build-e-familiar-spot |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 21, 2017 |title=Boeing to build 7E7, in a familiar spot |author=Bonné, Jon |date=December 17, 2003 |work=NBC News |access-date=15 February 2019}}</ref> As a baseline reference model using advanced materials, the proposed 7E7 would consume 10% less fuel than the Sonic Cruiser, and 17–20% less than the 767-300.<ref name=Norris-03 />

The design team at Boeing was finalizing the Sonic Cruiser configuration throughout 2002.<ref name=Mystery_Ship/><ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2002/photorelease/q3/pr_020722g.html |title=Boeing Updates Sonic Cruiser Configuration |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100719111514/http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2002/photorelease/q3/pr_020722g.html |archive-date=July 19, 2010 |publisher=Boeing |date=July 22, 2002}}</ref> Wind tunnel testing and [[computational fluid dynamics]] analysis were used to refine the Sonic Cruiser concept.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://boeing.mediaroom.com/2002-07-24-Boeing-Provides-Sonic-Cruiser-Technology-Progress-Report |title=Boeing Provides Sonic Cruiser Technology Progress Report |date=July 24, 2002 |publisher=Boeing |access-date=14 February 2019}}</ref> Based on artwork released by Boeing in July 2002, the Sonic Cruiser now sported two taller vertical tails with no inward cant, and the forward canard was set at zero degrees [[dihedral (aircraft)|dihedral]].<ref name=Mystery_Ship>{{cite web |url=http://www.aviation-news.co.uk/archive/sonic_cruiser.html |title=Sonic Cruiser – Boeing's Mystery Ship |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930054812/http://www.aviation-news.co.uk/archive/sonic_cruiser.html |archive-date=2011-09-30 |website=Aviation-News.co.uk}}</ref> By that time, three different designs had been advanced: one was the original canard-delta wing design, and two were more conventional mid-fuselage wing designs in the interest of better compatibility with existing airport jetway equipment, although those two designs were unable to offer the same performance as the original configuration.<ref name=Norris-03/>

===Cancellation and subsequent research===
In the end, most airlines favored lower operating costs over a marginal increase in speed, and the project did not attract the interest for which Boeing had been hoping.<ref name=Independent-2002 /> In some cases, the increased speed would lead to operational complications; aircraft could arrive at airports prior to the end of the morning curfew. Demand for air travel fell dramatically after the [[September 11 attacks]], and Boeing began publicizing Project Yellowstone to potential customers for the first time in February and March 2002.<ref name=AmazingSC/> Branson, an early supporter of the Sonic Cruiser, was openly skeptical of the aircraft's prospects by July 2002: "Unless more runways are built the Sonic Cruiser is going to struggle because airlines will not have the slots to use the aircraft."<ref name=Independent-2002>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/branson-attacks-boeings-sonic-cruiser-185410.html |title=Branson attacks Boeing's Sonic Cruiser |author=Harrison, Michael |date=23 July 2002 |newspaper=The Independent |access-date=15 February 2019}}</ref> None of the prospective operators prioritized improved aircraft speed in a meeting with Boeing held in October 2002.<ref name=Norris-03 />

The Sonic Cruiser project was finally abandoned by December 2002 in favor of the slower but more fuel-efficient Project Yellowstone/7E7 (later renamed [[Boeing 787 Dreamliner]]).<ref name=Norris-03>{{cite news |author=Norris, Guy |url=https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/sonic-cruiser-is-dead-long-live-super-efficient-159915/ |title=Sonic Cruiser is dead - long live Super Efficient? |work=Flight International |date=January 7, 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Wallace, James |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/No-guarantee-Boeing-s-next-jetliner-will-be-built-1103707.php |title=No guarantee Boeing's next jetliner will be built here |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=December 20, 2002}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Harris, Paul |url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2002/dec/22/travelnews.theairlineindustry.uknews |title=Struggling airlines reject the futuristic Sonic Cruiser |newspaper=The Guardian |date=December 21, 2002}}</ref> Much of the research from the Sonic Cruiser was applied to the 787, including [[carbon fiber reinforced plastic]] for the fuselage and wings, [[bleed air#Bleedless aircraft|bleedless engine]]s, cockpit and avionics design.<ref>{{cite news |author=Wallace, James |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/business/321719_dreamliner29.html |title=How the 787 'Dream' was born |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=June 29, 2007}}</ref>

In 2010, Boeing published a paper detailing several concepts for a supersonic airliner with reduced passenger count, derived from its work with the Sonic Cruiser and earlier NASA work on a [[High Speed Civil Transport]] (HSCT) concept. The concepts, developed under a NASA grant, included the 765-072B (approximately 100 passengers with a cruise at Mach 1.6–1.8), a smaller 765-076E business jet (30 passengers, Mach 1.6), and a larger 765-107B, nicknamed 'Icon-II' (120 passengers, Mach 1.8). All of the concepts had a range less than {{convert|6000|nmi|km|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite conference |url=https://www.fastforwardproject.com/meetings/pdf/Chet_Nelson_11_March_2011_-_AIAA-2010-4930_Supersonic_Vehicle_Systems_for_the_2020_to_2035_Timeframe.pdf |title=Supersonic Vehicle Systems for the 2020 to 2035 Timeframe |author1=Welge, H. Robert |author2=Nelson, Chester |author3=Bonet, John |date=June 28 – July 1, 2010 |location=Chicago, Illinois |conference=28th AIAA Applied Aerodynamics Conference |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160731191721/https://www.fastforwardproject.com/meetings/pdf/Chet_Nelson_11_March_2011_-_AIAA-2010-4930_Supersonic_Vehicle_Systems_for_the_2020_to_2035_Timeframe.pdf |archive-date=July 31, 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

On April 16, 2012, Boeing published an application for a patent for an aircraft configuration similar to that of the Sonic Cruiser; the patent was granted in 2014.<ref>{{cite patent |url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US8628040B2/en |number=8,628,040&nbsp;B2 |title=Aircraft configuration |inventor=Matthew D. Moore |invent2=Kelly L. Boren |invent3=Edward C. Marques |invent4=Justin Lan |assign=Boeing Co |pridate=January 30, 2006 |gdate=January 14, 2014 |status=Grant |country=US}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Aviation}}
{{aircontent
|see also=<!-- other related articles that have not already linked: -->
* [[Boeing 2707]], a proposed earlier generation Boeing [[supersonic transport]] (SST) which was a response to earlier SSTs.
* [[Convair 990]], an airliner from an earlier generation designed for a small but fast market segment which failed to materialize
* [[North American X-10]], an unmanned technology demonstrator that pioneered the canard/delta-wing configuration
* [[Boeing X-48]], an experimental unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) built to investigate the characteristics of blended wing body (BWB) aircraft.
|related=<!-- designs which were developed into or from this aircraft: -->
* [[Boeing 787 Dreamliner]]
|similar aircraft=<!-- aircraft that are of similar Role, Era, and Capability this design: -->
|lists=<!-- relevant lists that this aircraft appears in: -->
<!-- See [[WP:Air/PC]] for more explanation of these fields. -->
}}

==References==

=== Notes ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===
*Haenggi, Michael. "The Sonic Future?". ''Boeing Widebodies''. MBI, 2003. {{ISBN|0-7603-0842-X}}.

==External links==
* {{cite web |url=http://www.boeing.com/news/feature/concept/index.html |title=New Airplane Concept |date=2001 |publisher=Boeing |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010405100859/http://www.boeing.com/news/feature/concept/index.html |archive-date=5 April 2001 |url-status=dead |access-date=15 February 2019 }}
* {{YouTube |id=_W_lRl1uVrg |title=Boeing Sonic Cruiser}}, unveiled by Alan Mulally at the Paris Air Show on June 19, 2001
* [http://boeing.mediaroom.com/2001-06-19-Boeing-Sonic-Cruiser-Will-Change-The-Way-The-World-Flies "Boeing Sonic Cruiser Will Change The Way The World Flies"]. Boeing, June 19, 2001.
* [http://boeing.mediaroom.com/2002-07-24-Boeing-Testing-Sample-Sonic-Cruiser-Fuselage "Boeing Testing Sample Sonic Cruiser Fuselage"]. Boeing, July 24, 2002.
* [http://www.seattlepi.com/default/article/Giant-strides-on-sonic-cruiser-1070719.php#page-1 "'Giant strides' on sonic cruiser"]. Seattle PI, November 4, 2001.
* {{cite patent |url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US7644888B2/en |status=Grant |country=US |number=7,644,888&nbsp;B2 |inventor=Mark E. Eakins |invent2=Paul M. Wojciechowski |title=High-speed aircraft and methods for their manufacture |assign=Boeing Co |pridate=May 15, 2002 |gdate=January 12, 2010}}
* {{cite conference |url=https://www.mh-aerotools.de/company/paper_7/astec_2002.htm |title=The Sonic Cruiser – A Concept Analysis |author=Hepperle, Dr. Martin |conference=International Symposium "Aviation Technologies of the XXI Century: New Aircraft Concepts and Flight Simulation |date=May 7–8, 2002 |location=Berlin |publisher=Aviation Salon ILA-2002}} [https://www.dlr.de/as/Portaldata/5/Resources/dokumente/abteilungen/abt_ke/vorentwurf/hepperle-sonic-cruiser-paper.pdf direct PDF]
* {{cite news |url=https://www.avgeekery.com/urban-legend-boeings-sonic-cruiser-just-distraction-787-program/ |title=Was Boeing Playing Chess? We Examine Why Boeing Introduced The Sonic Cruiser |author=Clark, Kim |date=2018 |publisher=AVgeekery |access-date=15 February 2019}}

{{Boeing airliners}}

[[Category:Abandoned civil aircraft projects of the United States]]
[[Category:Boeing aircraft|Sonic Cruiser]]
[[Category:Canard aircraft]]
[[Category:Twinjets]]