New Delhi, B S Arun (DH News Service)

A Bangalore to Delhi flight in 20 minutes flat compared to the 140 minutes it takes now? That might well happen if a project, now in its initial stages at the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad, turns into reality.

In a development that may revolutionise the way we fly, a plane will scream through the sky at not just supersonic speed, but at hypersonic pace. The scramjet (short for Supersonic Combustion Ramjet) being developed will cruise at 6,000 km an hour or about eight times the speed of sound.

The dream project is now entering a crucial stage at DRDL and a demonstration vehicle should be ready by 2008, if not a year earlier.

Disclosing this to Deccan Herald on Wednesday, DRDL director Prahlada said: “Right now it may look foolish if you say India will make a jet that will zoom at this mind boggling speed. We need to reach that speed. When you think of the cost of the airplanes that we are purchasing, I think we should start producing them at home and at speeds that match the needs of future generations.”

First flilght

However he added, “Right now it is totally research and development work. We began the project five years ago and we plan to complete in five more years. The first flight test should be done in 2007 or latest by 2008.”

Bangalore’s National Aeronautical Laboratory is participating in the project. According to the Bangalore-born director, DRDL is now in the process of acquiring materials and fabrication of the demonstration vehicle will begin in 2006.

A ground test of the Scramjet is also planned for next year. “All theoretical studies are on. Reviews of the project are being done by experts in different fields,” he said.

What will the scramjet look like? The aeronautical engineer who has worked on missile systems such as Prithvi, Trishul, Akash and Nag, remarked: “It will be a small unmanned vehicle. It won’t be a mean-looking missile or an aircraft,” said Dr Prahlada.

Interestingly, the hypersonic jet will not fly on hydrogen but on the common man’s fuel — kerosene. However, DRDL has not yet thought of the project cost.

Dream project

Dr Prahlada said, “So far we did not need much money. We will approach the government whenever we need funds. Our aim is to reduce costs. If it costs the US $300 million to make, I want India to produce the scramjet for Rs 300 crore. At DRDL we are excited. It is our dream project. About 200 people are working on it now, with 40 people exclusively on the project. The US and Russia are developing similar vehicles which will no doubt revolutionise the aviation secto.” NASA last November developed and tested its X-43A research vehicle, flying it at nearly 10 times the speed of sound.

Data from the scramjet-powered research vehicle showed its revolutionary engine worked successfully at approximately Mach 10, nearly 7,000 miles per hour, as it flew at an altitude of approximately 1,10,000 feet.

The flight took place in restricted airspace over the Pacific Ocean northwest of Los Angeles.

The flight was the last and fastest of three unpiloted tests in NASA’s Hyper-X programme.

The programme’s purpose was to explore an alternative to rocket power for space access vehicles which will also expected to help advance commercial aviation technology.