Centennial’s Boom Supersonic plans to test its hypersonic Symphony engine – that powered the first civilian aircraft to break the sound barrier last year – at the Colorado Air and Spaceport, according to a news release on April 25.
“This is an exciting moment not just for Adams County but for the future of aerospace innovation in Colorado,” said Lynn Baca, Chair of the Adams County Board of Commissioners. “Boom’s investment in our community puts us at the forefront of the aerospace industry and reflects our shared commitment to advancing next-generation transportation technologies.”
Boom would use a former hypersonic test site at the Colorado Spaceport to run its prototype engine through its paces.
The Symphony test site is on the Spaceport grounds near Watkins, roughly 35 miles from Boom’s Denver headquarters. They will be using advanced instrumentation and a data collection system to accelerate engine development and enhancement.
Boom has agreed to invest $3.5 million in the Spaceport this year to get the testing site ready for this year’s prototype engine core trials, according to officials.
“We are very excited to welcome Boom Supersonic to Colorado Air and Space Port and to support the development of its revolutionary Symphony Engine,” said Jeff Kloska, Director of CASP. “We look forward to a great partnership with Boom and to advancing our aviation and aerospace ecosystem at CASP.”
The high-temperature test site was most recently used by Reaction Engines UK to test a revolutionary engine pre-cooler heat exchanger, according to a December 2022 Spaceport news release.
In January 2024, Colorado-based La Storia film company documented Boom Supersonics’ test flight of its XB-1 aircraft, the first civilian aircraft to break the sound barrier.
