'Son Of Concorde' Could Fly To New York In An Hour

The European aerospace giant Airbus has filed patents for a new supersonic jet that bears a strong resemblance to Concorde.

Dubbed the 'son of Concorde', it would be capable of reaching four times the speed of sound - or 2,500 mph.

That means a flight from London to New York would take just one hour - roughly the same as a train journey from London to Brighton in Sussex.

Airbus says the new aircraft would primarily be for "business travel and VIP passengers, who require transcontinental return journeys within one day”.

It also foresees the military using it for strategic reconnaissance and "ultra-rapid transport of high added-value goods or elite commandos".

Documents lodged with the US Patent Office describe Concorde mark 2 as an "ultra-rapid air vehicle".

It would take off almost vertically, like a Space Shuttle, and cruise at more than 100,000ft, carrying 20 passengers for distances of up to 5,500 miles.

The aircraft would re-enter normal air space as it approached its destination before landing.

The original Concorde was built by Airbus' forerunner Aerospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation.

It flew at 1,350mph - more than twice the speed of sound - at an altitude of 60,000ft and carried up to 120 passengers.

The first flight took place in 1976 and it was withdrawn from service in 2003 after a crash in Paris three years earlier.

One of the problems with the original Concorde was the amount of noise it made when breaking the sound barrier.

This led to it being banned from flying over land by many countries and restricted its operations.

But Airbus says the new craft's aerodynamics will limit sonic boom and make it more acceptable.

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Strongest Storm In The World So Far This Year

Super Typhoon Soudelor is barrelling towards Taiwan, Japan and China after leaving a trail of destruction in the Northern Marianas islands.

The cyclone has developed into the world's most powerful storm of the year with wind gusts up to 220mph (354kph) that have ripped down telegraph poles and flipped over cars.

A state of emergency has been declared on the islands where hundreds of residents are sheltering in temporary accommodation after the storm tore roofs off homes and caused power cuts.

"I've seen multiple primary power poles down; I've seen cars flipped over the road; I've seen lots of torn roofs," John Hirsh, from the American Red Cross in Saipan, told Pacific Daily News.

According to the National Weather Service, Saipan was hit by waves up to 30ft (nine metres) high.

Saipan resident Jacquelyn Belk said: "The wind busted out my bedroom window and flooded the room. I was terrified that my shutters would break my sliding doors.

"I saw power lines down everywhere and trees blocking roads. Driving around was like a maze just trying to weave around fallen trees."

Food, water and other supplies are being sent to Saipan from Hawaii and Guam together with cots and generators.

Soudelor is forecast to surge west-northwest over the western Pacific Ocean during the next few days where it is expected to weaken before hitting Taiwan at the weekend.

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