SUKHOI CONSIDERS SUPERSONIC JET.

A spokesman for the Sukhoi design bureau said yesterday that the planned S-21 executive jet would carry six or 10 passengers at speeds of up to twice the speed of sound–2,125 kph (1,320 mph). It would have a range of 78,400 km (4,600 miles). The plane will be powered with Russian-made engines and navigation systems and will include a luxury cabin with modern communications, he said. (9)

The plane is intended to fill a specialty niche for private company executive jets, a minuscule part of the overall airliner market. At present, the Anglo-French Concorde is the only supersonic airliner currently in operation. It can fly 100 passengers 6,000 km (3,750 miles) at a top speed of 2,179 km/h (1,354 mph). The Concorde flies mostly between Europe and North America. US aerospace giant Boeing last year said it might test technologies for a new generation of wide-bodied supersonic airliners. European aerospace companies also have announced plans for a research project to build a longer-range successor to Concorde. The new airliner they envisage would carry as many as 250 passengers a range of 10,000 km (6,200 miles) at Mach 2, twice the speed of sound.

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