This hypersonic 'space plane' promises four-hour flights between London and Sydney by 2030

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(CNN) - Flight times from London to Sydney could be reduced by 80% by the 2030s, should a hypersonic rocket engine being developed in the United Kingdom succeed.

The United Kingdom Space Agency announced on Tuesday at the United Kingdom Space Conference 2019 that it would work more closely with the Australian Space Agency in an agreement called "the world's first space bridge."

The synergistic air breathing rocket (SABER) engine from the Oxfordshire Reaction engines seems to be the crown jewel of this new company.

"When we make the SABER rocket engine a reality, it can allow us to reach Australia in about four hours," said Graham Turnock, head of the UK Space Agency.

“This is a technology that could definitely offer that. We are talking about the 2030s for operational service, and the work is already very advanced. ”

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Fans of supersonic flight have yearned for a new way to break the sound barrier since Concorde stopped flying in 2003.

In April 2019, Reaction Engines announced successful tests of a precooler, simulating conditions in Mach 3.3, or more than three times the speed of sound.

This is more than 50% faster than the Concorde cruise speed, which used to make the trip between New York and Paris in about 3.5 hours, and matches the record speed of the fastest jet aircraft ever manufactured, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird.

Precooler tests were carried out in a test facility at the Colorado Air and Space Port in the United States.

At such high speeds, the air flowing through the engine can reach incredibly high temperatures, which can cause damage.

A precooler reduces the temperature of the gases before they enter the central engine.

Recent tests show that the component can cool gases of more than 1,000 centigrade at room temperature in less than 1/20 of a second, according to a statement from Reaction Engines.

"This is a hugely significant milestone that Reaction Engines patented precooler technology has seen unparalleled heat transfer performance," said Mark Thomas, CEO of Reaction Engines.

"The HTX [precooler] test article met all the test objectives and the successful initial tests highlight how our precooler offers world-leading heat transfer capabilities with low weight and compact size."

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Thomas stressed that the technology could also be used in hybrid electric aviation, as well as very high speed flights.

The SABER engine is designed to reach speeds greater than Mach 5 in Earth's atmosphere, and then it can become a rocket that can fly through space to Mach 25.

The engine "breathes" air from the atmosphere, allowing greater fuel efficiency and less weight than existing rocket engines that need to transport their own oxygen supply.

"The main thing with SABER is that it is like a hybrid of a rocket engine and an aerodynamic engine, so it allows a rocket to breathe air," said Shaun Driscoll, director of Reaction Engines programs, at the UK Space Conference .

"The rockets have not really progressed in 70 years, while the aerodynamic engines have become very efficient, so you can combine an aerodynamic engine and a rocket and have a very light efficient propulsion system and basically create a space plane."

Such is the interest in technology that Reaction Engines has received over 100 million pounds ($ 130 million) in the last four years, and has secured the investment of important industry players such as BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and Boeing HorizonX.

The company is finalizing the construction of a test facility in Buckinghamshire in the United Kingdom, which will be the site for the first ground demonstration of a SABER engine breathing core.