Tag: electric aircraft

Electra.aero Secures $85M in Funding to Build ESTOL Prototype

Aerospace America reports that Electra.aero has secured new funding, “including $30 million from the U.S. Air Force AFWERX program, to develop a full-scale prototype” of an electric short takeoff and landing aircraft (eSTOL). The terms of the $30 million award include meeting “undisclosed milestones toward building and operating its pre-production prototype” as well as matching the “government funds with private funds.” Electra.aero says “it has exceeded that match by raising an additional $55 million from private investment, for a total of $85 million.”
Full Story (Aerospace America)

Aerus Signs LOI for 30 Eviation Electric Aircraft

Aviation Today reports that electric aircraft manufacturer Eviation “announced last week that the airline Aerus signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) for 30 commuter aircraft.” Aerus, a regional airline in Mexico, “plans to serve communities in the northern parts of the country including Nuevo León, Coahuila, Tamaulipas, and Veracruz.” The airline will “use Monterrey Airport as its regional hub to launch commercial operations this year.” Eviation’s Alice aircraft “has nine seats and is fully electric.”
Full Story (Aviation Today)

Electric Aviation Set to Fly in Australia

The Guardian (UK) reports that in late September “the first fixed-wing passenger electric passenger aircraft took off from Grant County international airport in the US state of Washington.” The nine-seater charter plane – known as Alice – “soared to 1,000 metres (3,500 feet) for eight minutes.” Less than two months later “Northern Territory Air Services, a scheduled airline and charter operator, put in an order to bring 20 of the aircraft to Australia with plans to fly passengers from Darwin to Uluru and Mount Isa.” It’s a small sign “that the winds may be changing for zero-emissions aviation in Australia, one of the most flight-dependent countries in the world.” Until recently there was “no industry body making the case for change and even the Royal Flying Doctor Service, which operates the largest air fleet in the country and has traditionally been a hotbed of innovation, has no plans to acquire or develop electric aircraft.” Yet away from the spotlight, “a small crop of startups and aviation companies have been working on electric flight.”
Full Story (The Guardian)

FAA Will Add Powered-Lift Aircraft to Air Carrier Category

BBC News reports that the FAA said on Monday that “it was proposing to expand its definition of the machines it considered air carriers from airplanes and helicopters, adding ‘powered lift’ to the list.” This is a big step forward in the regulation clearance for commercial air taxis, but the rules “now face a period of public comment before they can go into effect.” The agency also “said it expected to publish proposed rules for operating such aircraft in summer 2023. Those rules will outline in more detail the criteria that firms will need to meet to license pilots and launch their operations.”
BBC News (BBC News)

Air Taxis Clear One Regulation Hurdle

BBC News reports that the FAA said on Monday that “it was proposing to expand its definition of the machines it considered air carriers from airplanes and helicopters, adding ‘powered lift’ to the list.” This is a big step forward in the regulation clearance for commercial air taxis, but the rules “now face a period of public comment before they can go into effect.” The agency also “said it expected to publish proposed rules for operating such aircraft in summer 2023. Those rules will outline in more detail the criteria that firms will need to meet to license pilots and launch their operations.”
BBC News (BBC News)

Air Taxi Business May Get Early Business from Airline Alliance

Aerospace America reports that electric air taxi aircraft are seeing early customers in the form of the major airlines of American, United, and Delta. Examples include Delta’s $60 million investment in Joby Aviation, American placing a large pre-order with Vertical Aerospace, and United pledging to buy from Archer Aviation and Eve Air Mobility.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

Eviation Alice Performs First Flight

The AP reports that Eviation’s prototype electric aircraft took its first flight Tuesday. Aviation Week reports that the Alice prototype made its first flight from Moses Lake, Washington, “marking a major milestone on the road towards the fielding of a new generation of sustainable air vehicles.”
Full Story (Associated Press)
More Info (Aviation Week)

Aerospace Industry Looks Towards Low-Emission Future

BBC News reports that the aerospace industry is looking into electrified engines as a low-emissions option. Start-up Faradair “is planning to develop and sell a hybrid-electric passenger plane, aimed at the regional aviation market. It would have up to 19 seats and would be propelled by a fan driven by an electric motor. The necessary electricity would be provided by a small gas turbine.” Wright Electric’s the e-Genius and Eviation’s Alice are other similar aircraft.
Full Story (BBC News)