Several years ago a Eurofighter was scrambed to intercept what they thought was a hijacked plane; I didn't realise this at the time but the sonic boom shook my

Several years ago a Eurofighter was scrambed to intercept what they thought was a hijacked plane; I didn't realise this at the time but the sonic boom shook my flat and the windows, not that I minded in that case, but I wouldn't want to make a habit of it. Which set me to thinking, how much energy must be sapped away by the sonic bow shock, to make such a loud sound across such a wide area must be be exteremly inefficient. Also I've been interested in Max-Q, the fact that a rocket has to limit its speed to reduce aerodynamic stresses on its structure, not something I've thought much about before.