Shanghai Maglev train: China builds 621mph floating train that will fly through tunnels and be faster than a Boeing plane - how it works

China Railway will use magnetic levitation (maglev) technology to zip passengers through vacuum tubes faster than they have ever gone. The new design of the Maglev train will allow passengers to travel over 400mph faster than they are currently able to.

The magnets on the train are able to interact with the metal on the sides of the pipe to levitate the train and propel it forwards. Magnetic levitation, otherwise known as maglev, use superconducting magnets in a low-vacuum pipe to strengthen the magnetic field. These latest trains eliminate friction, to zoom by, effectively floating on thin air.

It will branch from the existing 11.5mile Maglev Express Line S2 from Changsha Nan station just west of the airport. There is already one maglev train in operation in China, which connects the Airport in Shanghai to the city center - making the 19 mile journey possible in around seven minutes.

Japan's MLX01 Maglev is the current fastest train in the world. Chinese engineers say the 'T-Flight' will topple this with it capable of reaching a top speed of 361mph. A test was run by the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) and 387mph was the reported speed - which is nearly 30mph faster than the MLX01 Maglev.

The reason why it's called a 'floating' train is because the train is levitated along a guideway through the use of magnetic forces, called maglev technology. To help increase speeds even further, the train travels through a vacuum tube that reduces the vehicle's air resistance.

For 'domestic intra-city commuting', CASIC has plans to make the train reach speeds of 1,243mph, which is faster than the speed of sound - which is just over 700mph. At that speed, it was also make the train more than twice the speed of a Boeing 737 plane.

Mao Kai, technical director of the T-Flight train system project with the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, previously said in 2017: "In the first phase, we'll realise the speed of 1,000 kilometres per hour (621mph) for domestic intra-city commuting; the next phase will see speeds of up to 2,000 kilometres per hour (1,243mph) for domestic intra-region traveling to link up economic zones of Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Wuhan. The third phase will realise the speed of 4,000 kilometres per hour (2,485mph). In the future, a flight train network covering countries along the Belt and Road region will be formed to support the Belt and Road Initiative.”