I told you Boom Supersonic would never fly

Photo by Theo Eilertsen Photography on Unsplash

If you want to build a new supersonic airliner, you don’t pick a software engineer to build it.

If I were looking for a pitchman, I would no doubt hire Blake Scholl.

On April 27, 2023, I published Boom Supersonic, Obsolete Before it Flies? In that article, I pointed out how the era of the jumbo jet is over, how cost overruns destroy projects when the projects are delayed, how Concord, the predecessor to Boom Supersonic, never turned a profit in 27 years, the skyrocketing cost of aviation fuel, how Boom’s claims that 600 flights was bogus, and how NASA and Lockheed-Martin — both experienced in supersonic flight — are progressing faster, and how all these things were known before North Carolina, Guilford County, and the cities of Greensboro and High Point all pitched in the spend $Billions in taxpayer dollars to build the Boom Superfactory which remains vacant today.

I’ll get back to the vacant factory further along.

I’m sure a lot of the folk who read that article thought me a crazy old man with no clue as to what I was talking about, but those of you who read to the end of this story will understand I was right all along.

On January 20, 2025, I penned, Why I believe Boom Supersonic will fail. In that article, I pointed out how Boom was already being passed by its competitors. I pointed out how NASA and Lockheed Martin were progressing at a rate Boom could never hope to match by using already available off-the-shelf components, while Boom was trying to reinvent the wheel. Or in this case, the wing. I pointed out how the Chinese were already flying 4 times as fast as Boom planned to fly. If you think the Chinese can’t capture markets, just look at what BYD is doing to Tesla in Europe and elsewhere. While Tesla pickups are coming unglued and the Tesla Simi is about to go belly up, BYD is selling electric cars, pick-ups, and Class 8 semis around the world.

“Tech entrepreneurs tend to be the type who start lots of things they can’t finish in the hope that someone bigger will come along and bail or buy them out before they ever have to admit they bit off more than they could chew.”

Might that be what an Amazon software designer named Blake Scholl was thinking when he borrowed billions in investor capital to found Boom Supersonic?

I also pointed out how real airplane builders were progressing much faster towards their goals to build even faster hypersonic airliners that handled sonic booms by flying so high the booms couldn’t be heard — an idea Boom used when they figured out they could never exceed the speed of sound without making a sonic boom.

Then on February 1, 2025, I wrote, There are no sonic booms in space, pointing out how Boom’s three-year strategic partnership with the U.S. Air Force had already expired, and how Boom had failed to reach the first billion of their “multibillion dollar program” that was already behind. The Boom Symphony engine that was supposed to be in production in 2024 is still not in production in 2026, and the Superfactory is no more than an empty echo chamber.

“Personally, I think a modernized recreation of Henry Ford’s Model T or the Wright Brothers’ 1903 Flyer would have much more success.”

On June 27, 2005, I submitted Did the Concorde Just Drop the Bomb on North Carolina, Greensboro, and Boom Aviation? I’m thinking Fly Concorde was just smoke and mirrors to sell crypto, but a mention of returning the old Concordes to the air seems more likely to fly than Boom.

My most recent article on the subject was Is Blake Scholl pitching the failed Tesla Semi of Boom Aviation? In it I pointed out how Scholl had backpedaled his claims, how flight speeds would be slower than promised, and the many dangers caused by sonic booms. Oh, and huge cash flow issues.

“According to the article, Boom has raised $800 million dollars since it’s founding in 2014, but Boom needs $12 to $15 Billion to get off the ground. The article also questions Scholl’s timeline — understandable considering Boom has missed every promised mark by years.

Perhaps Scholl should shift his focus to competing with the Dyson Supersonic Hairdryer?”

But in keeping my promises, I give to you the latest concern about Boom Supersonic that seems to be getting ignored by most media outlets. From the Raleigh News & Observer, Boom Supersonic’s $50 million Greensboro factory is idle, leaving NC with a choice.

You see, when Blake Scholl signed on for the incentive package, he promised to employ 500 workers in the Greensboro Superfactory by December 31, 2026. Currently, he employs zero, zilch, nada one.

“Boom mum on current Greensboro headcount

“If Boom employs fewer than 500 workers in Greensboro at any time after Dec. 31, 2026, the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority can end its lease and market the building to other companies. North Carolina has a similar buyback arrangement with VinFast, which has yet to build its promised auto factory southwest of Raleigh.

It’s safe to say Boom won’t meet this hiring mark in time. The company has yet to test or build any aircraft in Greensboro. It finished testing its X-B1 demonstrator jet after breaking the sound barrier in California early last year, and Overture remains unfinished — as does the “Symphony” engine Boom hopes will one day power its jet. After deals with engine manufacturers fell through, Boom is now creating Symphony in-house — which has contributed to delays.”

The article goes on to state,

“The 12-year-old company declined to share how many, if any, workers it currently has in Greensboro. In late 2024, The Wall Street Journal reported that Boom had laid off about half of its 260 employees. “Changes were made to Boom’s workforce in order to accommodate the company’s priority focus on building the Symphony engine and Overture airliner,” a company spokesperson told The N&O regarding these cuts.”

The article makes note of the fact that companies are lining up to rent the empty building which is on airport property.

There’s talk that the Symphony engines can power data centers, and maybe Boom will have better luck powering AI data centers, but because the Symphony engine isn’t the only air-cooled aviation engine (they all are air cooled) and like the rest, runs on aviation fuel, I doubt they’ll ever compete with existing electric utilities.

Boom just crashed.