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In April of this year, we reported on the latest activities of Aerion Supersonic, the ambitious, Boeing-backed planemaker whose goal was to bring supersonic passenger jets to the sky by the middle of the decade.

The company\\u2019s \\u201cboomless cruise\\u201d technology is designed to ferry business travelers on an ultra quiet jet in about half the time of a traditional plane\\u2026 without creating a sonic boom. The plane has generated a lot of excitement throughout its development, and Aerion touted an $11 billion sales backlog.

And while a lot can change over the course of just a few months, it still came as a shock when multiple news outlets reported last week that Aerion was shutting down.

Aerion confirmed the news to CNBC, saying in a statement that \\u201cthe current financial environment\\u201d has \\u201cproven hugely challenging to close on the scheduled and necessary large new capital requirements.\\u201d Translation? They\\u2019re out of money.\\xa0

And while the company seemed very bullish when it touted product developments in April, experts say we shouldn\\u2019t exactly be stunned that Aerion pulled the plug. Engadget says this was \\u201cnot a surprising outcome\\u201d due to the heavy expense of aircraft design and the circumstances of the pandemic creating a big question mark as to how long it will take for air travel to fully recover. They suggest that more permanent shifts to remote work might mean the market for business travel might not roar back fully\\u2026 possibly ever.

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