A new hypersonic jet has been unveiled this week, capable of flying holidaymakers to Australia in less than five hours from Europe – less than a quarter of the time it takes standard flights to make the journey.
The A2 aircraft’s engineers, British-based Reaction Engines, said the plane has the capacity to carry 300 passengers at a top-speed of nearly 4,000 miles per hour - five times the speed of sound – and is capable of flying 12,500 miles without stopping.
Speaking to the Guardian newspaper, the firm’s managing director Alan Bond, said: "It sounds incredible by today’s standards but I don’t see why future generations can’t make day trips to Australasia ."
"Our work shows that it is possible technically, now it’s up to the world to decide if it wants it," he added.
Travellers from the UK to Australia currently have to wait as long as 22 hours before arriving at their destination down under, especially as a connecting flight is usually required.
Reaction Engines also revealed the new A2 plane operates on ecologically-friendly liquid hydrogen and measures at 469 feet in length, making it around twice the size of the biggest jets currently on the market .
To reserve a seat on the state-of-the-art plane, passengers would need to pay £3,500 each, which is comparable to the prices of current first class tickets on standard flights .
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