The Sonic Boom Attenuator is a device designed for use with supersonic aircraft wherein a laser beam is shone down the leading edge of a short, rigid, straight, thin wing, heating thus rarefying the air before it passes over and under the wing. In this manner, the compression (which results from the rarefication) occurs more slowly as the relative wind passes through the beam than it otherwise would by impact with the hard surface of the wing. Because of the simplicity of design there are fewer components than have been proposed by other inventions and fewer mechanical devices to fail. Because of the rarefication, there is an overall reduction in drag to the aircraft and an attenuation of sonic boom in supersonic flight.