From supersonic jets to stacking passengers Airbus is always looking to the future in the rapidly changing aerospace sector.

In recent months the plane-making giant with a wing production plant in Broughton has submitted several patents that give a glimpse into the future of air travel.

How many of these finally make it into the skies will only become clear in decades to come.

Here we look at some of their most interesting proposals over the past year.

Airbus supersonic jet
Airbus supersonic jet

Airbus believes the jet would take just three hours to fly from Paris to San Francisco or Tokyo to Los Angeles.

They say it would travel twice the speed of Concorde and have a cruising altitude 20km higher than conventional aircraft.

The ultra rapid air vehicle has been dubbed the “son of Concorde”. The plans show the plane would be propelled vertically by rocket engines to supersonic speeds and then hydrogen-powered wing mounted ramjets would take over and propel the aircraft to its destination.

Last in the year they also announced a deal with Aerion to take forward plans for the world’s first private supersonic jet in as little as six years.

The AS2 plane will be capable of supersonic travel - hitting speeds of 1,217mph.

While not as quick as “son of Concorde” passengers could still travel between London and New York in just three hours, and Los Angeles to Tokyo in six.

Flights could get even more cramped if a proposed seating arrangement from Airbus gets the green light.

The plane manufacturer, which has a wing-making factory at Broughton, has filed a patent for a dramatic, split-level cabin that could see passengers stacked on top of each other.

According to the designers, the higher seats would be able to recline into a lying position.

The new seating arrangement was created by Airbus’ designers in Germany and filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office.

"In modern means of transport, in particular in aircraft, it is very important from an economic point of view to make optimum use of the available space in a passenger cabin,” Airbus wrote in the patent filing.

Another innovative project would see passengers take a seat in the ‘Flying Doughnut’.

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The futuristic plane has a circular cabin with curved aisles and a hole in the middle, giving it the shape of a doughnut.

Passengers in economy would be seated in the outer ring, while business seating would be located within the inner ring.

The unconventional aircraft, shaped like a Stealth Bomber, would be lighter and have more cabin space for travellers while solving a long-standing problem related to cabin pressure.