The Logan Bartlett Show• Apr 25, 2025• 1:35:15Interview

Why Supersonic Flight Failed & How Boom is Bringing it Back

From The Logan Bartlett Show

Blake Scholl•Founder & CEO, Boom Supersonic

Executive Summary

Commercial air travel has stagnated for 50 years, with no increase in cruising speed, creating a significant opportunity for disruption.
The Concorde's failure is attributed to its government-led, prestige-oriented model that lacked economic viability, creating a false narrative that supersonic flight is impractical.
Boom Supersonic is targeting the highly profitable international business class segment (20% of seats, 80% of profits) by offering a supersonic jet at a comparable price point to current subsonic business class.
There is a growing geopolitical urgency to revitalize the US aerospace and industrial base to maintain technological leadership and national security, particularly in light of competition from China.

11 quotes

Concerns Raised

The calcification and lack of a 'startup mindset' in the traditional aerospace talent pool.
Regulatory hurdles, specifically the long-standing ban on overland supersonic flight in the US.
The decline of the US industrial base and the rapid rise of China as a strategic competitor in aerospace.

Opportunities Identified

Disrupting the stagnant Boeing-Airbus duopoly with a fundamentally new and faster product.
Capturing the highly profitable international business class travel market.
Unlocking significant new economic activity and demand by drastically reducing the friction of long-distance travel.
Revitalizing the American aerospace industry and its associated supply chain.

Key Themes

The Stagnation of Aerospace Innovation

The aerospace industry, particularly incumbents like Boeing, has seen a dramatic slowdown in innovation over the past several decades, with no new major airplane designs in over 20 years. This is attributed to a shift from founder-led, commercially-driven progress to a more bureaucratic, quarterly-focused management style that avoids long-term, capital-intensive risks.

This decades-long stagnation created a massive market opening for a new entrant like Boom Supersonic to challenge the established duopoly with a technologically ambitious product.

Learning from Concorde's Failure

The Concorde is framed as a cautionary tale of a government prestige project that was technologically impressive but economically disastrous. Its high ticket prices, small capacity, and lack of a viable business model led to its demise and convinced the world that supersonic travel was not feasible.

Boom's entire strategy is built on avoiding Concorde's mistakes by focusing on product-market fit, targeting the existing profitable business class market, and developing a commercially viable aircraft from the ground up.

The Business Case for Supersonic Travel

The core thesis rests on the lopsided economics of international air travel, where business class seats generate 80% of profits. Boom's Overture jet is designed to capture this lucrative market by offering a 2x speed increase at a price point comparable to today's business class, a market incumbents are hesitant to disrupt for fear of cannibalizing their own profits.

This focused business model makes supersonic travel economically viable for the first time, providing a clear path to profitability and market adoption without needing to invent a new customer segment.

Regulation as a Barrier to Innovation

The 1973 US government ban on overland supersonic flight is identified as a critical regulatory barrier that killed the market for a minimum viable supersonic jet (e.g., a private coast-to-coast jet). This regulation, ostensibly for noise concerns, is argued to have been protectionist and a major contributor to the lack of progress.

Overcoming and influencing these historical regulatory hurdles is a key challenge and strategic priority for re-introducing supersonic flight, requiring deep engagement with agencies like the FAA and policymakers.

Geopolitical Imperative for Industrial Renewal

The conversation extends beyond commercial aviation to the broader decline of the US industrial base and the urgent need for its revitalization. The rise of China as a strategic competitor in aerospace and the vulnerability of US military supply chains highlight the national security implications of losing manufacturing and technological leadership.

This geopolitical context provides a powerful tailwind and sense of urgency for projects like Boom, framing them not just as commercial ventures but as critical to national competitiveness and security.

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Topics

Supersonic Flight Aviation Aerospace Industry Boom Supersonic Blake Scholl Concorde Boeing Airbus Innovation Stagnation Regulation FAA Geopolitics US-China Relations Industrial Base Business Models Product-Market Fit

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