Launch HN: Airhart Aeronautics (YC S22) – A modern personal airplane

Post by dsugarman » Mon, Aug 05, 2024, 8:46 PM UTC

namdnay wrote: post #112

> We want people who don’t think about airplanes as a mode of transportation to start flying It really depresses me that in 2024 we have some of the smartest, most privileged people in the world deciding that this is what they’re going to dedicate their life to Shouldn’t we be doing exactly the opposite? Getting people to stop flying

Post by bozhark » Mon, Aug 05, 2024, 8:48 PM UTC

bambax wrote: post #125

sethkim wrote: post #83

Instrument-rated pilot (and engineer) here. First - congrats on the launch! I think you're working on an interesting set of components that will prove useful to GA aircraft technology. Bringing fly-by-wire, and lowering the cost of maintenance/manufacturing are both great efforts. That being said, my personal view is that stick-and-rudder control is one of the less critical components to improving GA safety. Everythi…

Agreed! Learning how to fly alone is the easy part. The hard part is all the rest. Also, this is inconsistent: > large commercial airplane technology has developed to the point that the planes practically fly themselves > We think stick and rudder skills are definitely a necessity for airline pilots flying hundreds of people on board for the extremely rare cases where emergencies do happen and many people's lives are…

Post by 01HNNWZ0MV43FF » Mon, Aug 05, 2024, 8:50 PM UTC

n_ermosh wrote: post #71

purplerhino wrote: post #69

What are the environmental implications of transitioning people traveling by car/train to small planes? In addition to being louder and dispersing pollutants over a wider area, don't small planes generate significantly more GHG emissions than cars over the same number of miles? Also, given that planes are not nearly as easy to electrify as cars and trains (energy density is significantly lower in batteries than liqui…

Today, airplanes are not great when it comes to their environmental impacts. If we are successful in our bet that we can grow the GA market, we'll have the resources to invest into greener propulsion technology. That space is currently evolving quickly, with hybrid-electric, hydrogen, full electric and others all being explored. So it's in our plans to address that as well.

Post by namdnay » Mon, Aug 05, 2024, 8:53 PM UTC

two-sandwich wrote: post #146

namdnay wrote: post #112

> We want people who don’t think about airplanes as a mode of transportation to start flying It really depresses me that in 2024 we have some of the smartest, most privileged people in the world deciding that this is what they’re going to dedicate their life to Shouldn’t we be doing exactly the opposite? Getting people to stop flying

I agree. There are many more important issues that could be solved with this person's expertise and willingness to apply themselves. Unfortunately, you can only lead a horse to water. The vastness of areas which could be studied, advanced, or challenged lends itself well to human curiosity. I feel it would be unwise and unreasonable to stop people from exploring their area of interest. Consider all the academic paper…

Post by namdnay » Mon, Aug 05, 2024, 8:54 PM UTC

dsugarman wrote: post #141

namdnay wrote: post #112

> We want people who don’t think about airplanes as a mode of transportation to start flying It really depresses me that in 2024 we have some of the smartest, most privileged people in the world deciding that this is what they’re going to dedicate their life to Shouldn’t we be doing exactly the opposite? Getting people to stop flying

you don't really clarify why people should stop flying, I'll assume it's due to global warming? Personally, I think this is a fantastic idea, to simplify the user experience of flying to make it accessible sounds incredible. Private jets are the ultimate luxury in life that so few have access to today. If it is global warming related, then I think that problem needs to be solved as well, but it's somewhat separate. E…