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Can a commercial plane reach Mach 1?

The transonic regime 80, though no commercial aircraft in operation today exceeds Mach 1. Instead, they can achieve transonic speeds, including the Boeing 747–8I (cruising speed of Mach 0.86) and Airbus 380 (cruising speed of Mach 0.85).



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Original flight tests of 747s conducted in 1969 and 1970 took 747-100 models to speeds of Mach 0.99. In addition, Boeing knows one case in which a 747 operated by Evergreen International made an emergency descent at speeds that exceeded Mach 1.

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Can a 737 fly Mach 1? The maximum speed you could attain would depend on the airframe; MMO for the 737 is 0.82 Mach, so you're already having issues. Per the A320 TCDS the MMO of that airplane is also 0.82 Mach.

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The Bombardier Global 8000 During a flight test in May 2021, the Bombardier Global 8000 broke the sound barrier, reaching Mach 1.015 (1243 kph), as confirmed by a NASA-operated Boeing F-18, which accompanied the aircraft during testing. It also reached this speed while flying on SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel).

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The average cruising speed of a helicopter is generally less than 160 knots (184 MPH). A fixed-wing aircraft may be as high as 450 knots (517 MPH). There is simply no helicopter that can cross continents at speeds approaching Mach 1 (the speed of sound), but several fixed-wing aircraft have done this.

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Fifty years ago, the federal government banned all civilian supersonic flights over land. The rule prohibits non-military aircraft from flying faster than sound so their resulting sonic booms won't startle the public below or concern them about potential property damage.

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