The Russian entrepreneur has a plan. From Europe to the USA in 1.5 hours This plane looks like a spaceship

While cars have changed beyond recognition over the last decades, changes in aviation are rather marginal. Of course, planes are much more economical, quieter and more modern. Boeing boasts that, for example, in the Dreamliner, it has used larger windows, and the pressure in the cabin is closer to that on Earth, which positively affects the well-being of passengers. However, the speed – and consequently the length of the flight – of the popular B787 does not differ from the good-natured Jumbo Jet from the beginning of its production (1970s).

Destinus wants to revolutionize travel. In 1.5 hours across the Atlantic

European startup Destinus has a plan to change that. The company promises to revolutionize the way we travel, making long distances no longer a problem. The startup was founded in 2021 by Mikhail Kokorich, a Russian physicist and entrepreneur who condemned the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The company’s headquarters is located in Switzerland, and Destinus’ team (outside Switzerland) also includes specialists from Germany, France and Spain. There are plans for two aircraft models – Destinus S and Destinus L – which will allow you to reach hypersonic speeds, i.e. exceeding the value of Mach 5 (6,174 km/h). This means that planes will be five times faster than sound and will reduce the time to reach anywhere in the world to a few hours at most.

The company promises a flight from London to New York in no more than 1.5 hours, which is twice the result (the record-breaking flight between Heathrow and JFK took Concorde less than 3 hours, which is completely beyond our reach today). Besides – launched on the Destinus website – the flight from Sao Paulo to Frankfurt will take 3 hours. (instead of 12), from Dubai to the American Memphis (Tennessee) it will take only 3.5 hours (instead of 14 hours and 45 minutes), and the distance from Frankfurt to Sydney will be covered in 4 hours. and 15 minutes Today, on such a route you have to fly with a change, and the travel time will be about 22 hours at best.

Hydrogen drive and ramjet engines. Like at NASA

These two aircraft will differ mainly in their application. Destinus S is a small, 25-seat business aircraft capable of flying 10,000 km. km, traveling at a cruising altitude of 33 km, i.e. approx. 20 km higher than currently produced aircraft (and less than 15 km higher than Concorde). The cruise Destinus L promises to be much more interesting. According to the startup’s assumptions, the machine will accommodate from about 300 to 400 people and will cover a maximum of 22,000 km. km on a single refueling. Theoretically, this means the possibility of reaching any place in the world with a fuel supply sufficient for approx. 2 thousand. km (to reach the antipodes from any place, you need to cover about 20,000 km in a straight line). For comparison, the distance from Warsaw to Auckland in New Zealand is 17,350 km.

Both planes, of course, are to use unconventional propulsion. Each of the two machines is to combine boosted turbojet engines (needed for take-off and landing) with ramjet engines with a supersonic combustion chamber. which is a clean source of energy (it does not emit carbon dioxide, but water vapour). Interestingly, a similar technology (hydrogen ramjet) was used in 2004 by an experimental unmanned aerial vehicle, which accelerated to a speed of Mach 9.6, i.e. a trivial 11,854 km/h.

Both planes from the European startup are, of course, a song of the future for now. The machines have not yet progressed beyond the design phase, and it will take many more years to deal with the numerous problems that occur at such high speeds. Among other things, cooling the fuselage, which will heat up to 1000 degrees Celsius during the flight. Jak, who had the opportunity to speak with representatives of Destinus, the startup plans to produce a smaller Model S between 2032 and 2035. A larger airliner (model L) is to appear only in the 1940s. Therefore, we will have to wait a while for the revolution in travel. For now, the fastest option will be to use conventional machines from Boeing and Airbus.