There hasn’t been a supersonic passenger plane in service

since the last Concorde flew in 2003, but Boeing and several

other aerospace companies are reportedly close to unveiling

possible successors.

The Sunday Times reports Boeing, Lockheed

Martin, and

Gulfstream are all heading to the Farnborough International

Airshow

outside London next month with prototypes for the next

generation of supersonic passenger planes.

The word is they would be made out of lighter composite

materials allowing for speeds of 2,400 miles an hour, which

is nearly twice the speed of the Concorde. It could

turn a 12 hour flight from London to Sydney to just four

hours.

The biggest hurdle is whether the companies can get rid of

the sonic booms that plagued the Concorde and some

engineers say they have been successful.