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The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

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Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#121

Post by jacquesm »

AshleyGrant wrote: post #108

The moment he talked about "remote pilots managing many planes," I closed the tab. Remote pilots sound great until something goes wrong, and things inevitably go wrong, not often, but they go wrong. I will never fly on any aircraft that does not have a minimum two-person crew on the flight deck. The ability to "feel" the plane is invaluable in an emergency situation. Frankly, just the fact that someone whose life is…

Indeed, it also is a bit silly: they have enough on their plate just getting this plane type certified.

Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#122

Post by arjie »

bryanlarsen wrote: post #105
runako wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 500 miles with hybrid system > the grueling two hour drives What country are you in, and perhaps more importantly, what roads are you driving on?

According to the video, 2/3rds of that range is for loiter and divert capability. It's illegal to fly a route without the capability to loiter and divert. You need 30-60 minutes of loiter + 100 miles of divert. This plane cannot be used on any route longer than about ~200 miles. Which can be driven in 2 hours, although obviously the OP was referring to the 120 mile electric range.

> This plane cannot be used on any route longer than about ~200 miles. Which can be driven in 2 hours.

Huh, perhaps then it wouldn’t be suited to places where people drive at that speed. In the US I doubt people drive 200 miles routinely in 2 hours. It would be closer to 3.5 h I think going by the routine 6 h it takes SF to LA which is about 350 mi.

I think if you have very high speed road/rail transportation that dominates this across fixed routes. Road at 100 mph average definitely wins for flexibility.

Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#124

Post by free_bip »

tristanj wrote: post #46
dmurray wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really, a prototype airplane, the first of this size ever built with this novel propulsion system, had engineers involved in the design?

You've missed the point. The engineers went too far optimizing for weight, to the point of sacrificing usability.

The company that makes the airplane is not normally the company that installs the interior anyways. The airline that buys the plane typically determines what the interior will look like (stuff like ratio of business to economy, overall # of seats, in flight entertainment, etc)

It being barebones from the factory is not a problem.

Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#126

Post by strictnein »

bitwize wrote: post #115
tuatoru wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Surprised they are not using linear opposed piston crankshaftless generators to make an extended range EV aircraft. Smaller, lighter, simpler, cheaper, and more flexible about fuel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeG4zLlFkak Linear engine starts around 11:19

My father, a mechanical engineer, was a tireless advocate of the hypocycloid crankshaft mechanism. In the 90s, hybrid vehicles with a hypocycloid-based generator feeding the batteries that make the electric motors go was the application he was going for, especially since hypocycloids function best at constant RPM.

I say this with all sincerity, I love this sentence:

"My father, a mechanical engineer, was a tireless advocate of the hypocycloid crankshaft mechanism."

For some reason just reading that brought a smile to my face.

Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#127

Post by _carbyau_ »

Waterluvian wrote: post #86
infotainment wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Cheap electric transportation can finally offset USA's lacking rail commutes I'm not sure how building an electric aircraft would help with this. Are people going to suddenly switch to commuting by plane? Fixing America's commute problem is primarily an urban planning one (ie, putting all the homes nowhere near anything) and not an insufficient-electric-aircraft one.

Could you imagine the (rather justified?) NIMBYism for all the airports required for commuter flight? If rail can’t be done, flight definitely won’t fly.

Curious, would electric flight be significantly quieter such that airport noise is significantly less of an issue?

Or is the noise from turbulence through the air or something? I honestly would think they'd be minimising turbulence anyway for energy efficiency.

Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#128

Post by bombcar »

strictnein wrote: post #126
bitwize wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My father, a mechanical engineer, was a tireless advocate of the hypocycloid crankshaft mechanism. In the 90s, hybrid vehicles with a hypocycloid-based generator feeding the batteries that make the electric motors go was the application he was going for, especially since hypocycloids function best at constant RPM.

I say this with all sincerity, I love this sentence: "My father, a mechanical engineer, was a tireless advocate of the hypocycloid crankshaft mechanism." For some reason just reading that brought a smile to my face.

From mechanical engineers I’ve met it almost seems a requirement that they have something they tireless advocate for.

Re: The largest electric aircraft just flew [video]

#130

Post by moab9 »

strictnein wrote: post #126
bitwize wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My father, a mechanical engineer, was a tireless advocate of the hypocycloid crankshaft mechanism. In the 90s, hybrid vehicles with a hypocycloid-based generator feeding the batteries that make the electric motors go was the application he was going for, especially since hypocycloids function best at constant RPM.

I say this with all sincerity, I love this sentence: "My father, a mechanical engineer, was a tireless advocate of the hypocycloid crankshaft mechanism." For some reason just reading that brought a smile to my face.

Yeah. I bet he was.
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