An amateur video has been released which shows the moment a US navy jet breaks the speed of sound flying past an aircraft carrier, leaving an explosive sonic boom in its wake.

In the 27-second video posted to YouTube, the F/A-18C Hornet flies past a group of watching sailors on an aircraft carrier at incredible speed, before a tail or air appears behind the jet and an explosive noise is heard as it breaks the speed of sound.

The jet needed to reach speeds of roughly 768 mph in order to break the speed of sound. The distinct white-coloured sonic boom at the tail of the plane is the result of the shock waves caused from reaching supersonic speed.