Boeing's New 'Transonic' Wing Could Send Planes Higher, Faster

A new 'transonic' wing design revealed Wednesday by Boeing could enable planes to travel higher and faster.

The latest conceptual design of the Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) could give planes "unprecedented aerodynamic efficiency" and allow them to fly at Mach 0.80, which is about 615 miles per hour and just below the speed of sound (767 mph), according to a press release.

Planes equipped with the new wing could conceivably still exceed today's airliners that typically reach speeds of 400 to 600 mph.

The extremely thin, ultra-lightweight folding wing measures a lengthy 170 feet. The impressive wingspan is supported by a truss.

During an earlier conceptual phase of the design, developers were able to achieve speeds of Mach 0.70-0.75 in lab tests, but new modifications to the wing enabled them to increase speeds to Mach 0.80.

"The end result was a more integrated design that significantly improved vehicle performance," the company noted.

While the wing design will allow for faster travel, it still cannot measure up to speeds achieved by the defunct Concorde jet, which flew at Mach 2.0, or 1,350 mph.