United CEO says Boom supersonic jet will slip past 2029

"'29 is their official timeline. It's not going to happen in '29 -- it's going to take longer," United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said on an October 28 podcast, as Ars Technica reported. Kirby, one of Boom's first announced customers, had in March rated Overture's chances of reaching commercial service at "50-50."

Boom's attention has moved. On October 22 the company unveiled a factory in Centennial, Colorado for a 42-megawatt natural gas turbine called Superpower, aimed at AI data centers. It is targeting a first delivery in mid-2027, 25 turbines in 2028, and 50 by 2029, the same year Overture is officially supposed to enter commercial service.

A $1.25 billion turbine deal with Crusoe has already collapsed. Founder Blake Scholl acknowledged the collapse on September 25.

Kirby said Boom still has "a lot of hurdles to overcome" on Overture and FAA certification. "So it's not a guarantee that they'll overcome," he added. The Sprint Core prototype, a shared turbine core intended to power both Superpower and the Symphony aircraft engine, is scheduled for its first fire before Thanksgiving.