The US Federal Aviation Administration has granted approval for Boom Supersonic to conduct test flights with its XB-1 demonstrator aircraft to help the US start-up move forward with development of its supersonic Overture airliner. The airworthiness certificate is effective 11 August, the FAA says. Colorado-based Boom adds that the FAA certificate approves these test flights over the Mojave Desert in the US Southwest. This remote area is ideal because sonic booms can be heard up to 25 miles (40km) away. Civilian aircraft are banned in the European Union and USA from flying over land at supersonic speeds, while military aircraft must first gain permission to do so. The FAA certificate grants Boom an exception to test fly its demonstrator over land. That ban on supersonic flight presents obstacles for the commercial aviation ambitions of Boom for its Overture airliner, which intended to fly at speeds of Mach 1.7, twice as fast as a typical commercial aircraft. Boom aims for Overture to carry 65-80 passengers with a range of 4,250nm (7,870km) on routes across oceans until regulators agree on standards to reduce sonic boom noise enough to enable commercial supersonic flights over land. "In preparation for flight, Boom's test pilots have completed hundreds of hours in the simulator for aircraft evaluation, operations development, training, and human factors assessments to achieve the highest levels of safety," the start-up states. "The test pilots also maintain flight proficiency in a T-38 trainer aircraft, the same aircraft that will be used as a chase plane for all flight tests of XB-1." First completed by Boom in 2020, the XB-1 demonstrator is powered by three GE-built J85 turbojet engines, has a carbon composite and titanium fuselage, while the start-up says its modified delta wing "enables safe operation at take-off and landing as well as supersonic speeds". The turbojet propulsion of the XB-1 differs from Boom's eventual goal of developing the medium-bypass turbofan Symphony engine for its Overture aircraft. The three J85 engines on the XB-1 would generate a combined maximum thrust of 12,300lb (55kN). Testing the sub-scale XB-1 demonstrator would help provide Boom with safety procedures and other data to develop the larger Overture and its Symphony engines. The airframer seeks to develop Symphony engines to generate 35,000lb of thrust while using no afterburners during flight, complementing its goal of minimising emissions by powering the engine completely with sustainable aviation fuel. The Overture airliner is designed to have four Symphony engines. Boom targets certification of the Overture by the US Federal Aviation Administration in 2029. Prospective customers for Overture include American Airlines, Japan Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and United Airlines.

Qantas has ordered 12 Boeing 787s and 12 Airbus A350s to start replacing its A330s and A380s in coming years. The order for new aircraft comprises four additional 787-9s and eight larger -10 variants that will start delivering from the 2027 financial year, as well as 12 additional A350-1000s that will start delivering in the 2028 fiscal year. Qantas adds that it has taken additional purchase rights and options that stretch out to the 2037 fiscal year but did not provide specific numbers. "We've got sufficient rights and options to replace the fleet that we've got with the A330 and the A380, and we've got rights to grow beyond that. How many of those that we commit to in time will be determined by the market, the strength, and the routes that we want to operate," chief executive-designate Vanessa Hudson said during an earnings call. Fleets data shows that the airline operates 25 A330s and eight A380s, with the final two of the latter set to return from storage before the end of the year. Consistent with its current fleet of 14 787-9s, all the newly ordered 787s will be powered by General Electric GEnx engines and will start replacing its A330 fleet "over several years", Qantas states. Chief executive Alan Joyce commented that the airline's 10 A380s "still have a lot of life left in them" following recent cabin upgrades, however they will start to be replaced by A350-1000s from the 2032 fiscal year. Qantas has an existing order for 12 A350-1000ULRs, powered by Rolls-Royce Trent-XWB engines, the first of which will be delivered in 2025, and will be used to open new nonstop routes under its Project Sunrise initiative.

Boeing has discovered defects in the aft pressure bulkhead on some of its 737 Max aircraft provided by Spirit AeroSystems which will impact near-term delivery of the type. “During factory inspections, we identified fastener holes that did not conform to our specifications in the aft pressure bulkhead on certain 737 airplanes,” states the company in an email. Boeing notes “this is not an immediate safety of flight issue for the 737 fleet,” adding that it has already notified the US Federal Aviation Administration. It is still in the process of identifying the number of aircraft affected and will continue to deliver those that are not. Meanwhile, Spirit says in a separate statement that “there will not be a material impact to our delivery range for the year related to this issue.” Boeing had forecast the delivering 400-450 737 Max jets for the year. With the latest discovery, the airframer says that they are “continuing to evaluate potential impact to our full-year guidance”. This is the latest in a series of issues that have plagued Boeing’s 737 Max programme this year. In April, Spirit flagged a quality issue on the aft fuselage section of certain 737 fuselages that slowed the delivery rate of new jets. Later in August, the FAA flagged safety issues with 737 Max's engine anti-ice system under certain conditions that will ultimately be addressed through a redesign of the system by Boeing.