The World - News from Aug. 12, 1988

Japan is launching a project to develop an ultrasonic passenger plane that will be able to fly between New York and Tokyo in three to five hours, government officials said. The Ministry of International Trade and Industry is putting together teams of companies that will conduct research on advanced engines and fuselage materials, according to ministry officials. Engineers expect the plane to fly up to five times the speed of sound, or about 4,000 m.p.h., the officials added. A nonstop flight between Tokyo and New York now takes about 13 hours.