Moving forward on its vision to build an ecosystem surrounding supersonic travel, Aerion Supersonic has made a strategic partnership agreement with international business aviation services provider Jetex to ensure a “seamless experience” for passengers traveling aboard the AS2 supersonic business jet.
As a preferred partner, Jetex will coordinate with Aerion to provide personalized travel arrangements for AS2 customers at its private terminals. The companies will also collaborate on efforts to encourage broad adoption of synthetic fuels.
Working with Aerion, Jetex plans to unveil a suite of services tailored specifically for the launch of AS2, said Jetex founder and CEO Adel Mardini. “Since the retirement of the Concorde in 2003, the world has been eagerly waiting to return to the supersonic skies,” he said. “Two decades later, we look forward to welcoming the first passengers traveling aboard AS2 at Jetex private jet terminals around the world.”
Jetex operates a network of 35 such terminals, along with providing aircraft fueling, ground handling, trip planning, and concierge services. Plans call for expanding that network to 50 locations by 2025.
The partnership comes as Aerion chairman Tom Vice recently laid out long-term aspirations for the company’s “Aerion Connect” initiative to take a holistic approach to provide seamless travel for the customer from door-to-door.
The goal to expand the availability of synthetic fuels is in line with Aerion’s design ambitions to have the AS2 run on 100 percent on such fuels and reach supersonic speeds without an afterburner. Aerion plans to complete the preliminary design review milestone next year and kick off the flight-test program for the Mach 1.4 business jet in the middle of the decade with entry into service in the 2027 timeframe.
Accumulating a backlog valued at more than $3 billion, Aerion is targeting the manufacture of 300 AS2s in the aircraft’s first decade.
