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Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

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Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#71

Post by Robotbeat »

bertil wrote: post #14
rcMgD2BwE72F wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We already have trains, you know.

Trains are great in many cases, but there’s some limit to tunnels and bridges: you can go from Stockholm to Berlin directly, but Stockholm to Helsinki is harder (that’s actually the destination that the plane is likely to cover); Manchester to Amsterdam is feasible by train in theory, but given the constraints around London and the Channel Tunnel, unlikely to loose its flight connection. Same for Aberdeen to Oslo. Ma…

I wanted to love ekranoplanes, but although they have greater lift for a given span, they don’t have superior lift to drag ratios, which is what limits efficiency.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#72

Post by IshKebab »

thunderrabbit wrote: post #51
saddlerustle wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

LNA, an aviation industry newsletter, recently came to a very different conclusion [1]. The biggest difference to Wendover Productions's numbers is a hugely higher estimate in the cost of replacing the battery every 5-10 years due to battery degradation. [1] https://leehamnews.com/2021/07/01/the-true-cost-of-electric-...

Thank you for bringing up this other conclusion. I still side with Wendover overall. Even if batteries have to be replaced that often now, the technology will continue to improve, becoming both cheaper and more reliable. Computers used to be the size of rooms and break due to literal insects in them.

I don't think you can cite the technology that has advanced most dramatically out of all the technologies to support some kind of rule that all technology inevitably advances rapidly.

Yes they'll get better, but they might get 10% better over the next 20 years or something like that.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#74

Post by marcosdumay »

dillondoyle wrote: post #13
username_my1 wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean in Europe all capitals are within 100s/1000s of km from each others... and inner country travel is definitely within the 100km range. This has a huge potential, but I don't know if it will improve overtime, since energy density of Li-ion is a hard limit.

For me only if we figure out how to shorten airport time. Otherwise train in europe is easier - and usually located directly downtown or close instead of an hour in a car with traffic.

In principle, smaller planes could have a shorten airport time and use a closer airport.

I don't think it will happen, or at least that it will happen any time soon, but this is one problem that can be solved.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#75

Post by gok »

saddlerustle wrote: post #39
itsrajju wrote: post #12

Wendover Productions (who else?!) recently released a video[1] on the future of electric planes. Quite a lot of information in there! [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH4b3sAs-l8

LNA, an aviation industry newsletter, recently came to a very different conclusion [1]. The biggest difference to Wendover Productions's numbers is a hugely higher estimate in the cost of replacing the battery every 5-10 years due to battery degradation. [1] https://leehamnews.com/2021/07/01/the-true-cost-of-electric-...

"The cost of replacing such a battery can be projected to reach around $400 to $500 per kWh mid-decade"

By 2025 batteries are not going to cost 3x more than they cost today.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#76

Post by kevincox »

bamboozled wrote: post #41
wongarsu wrote: post #3

Small aircraft on short routes are quite a niche market right now, but electric aircraft have a very good value proposition there, reducing both fuel and maintenance costs drastically. Depending on how things work out, in 10 years we might see a lot more flights in 10-30 seat electric aircraft, e.g. as connecting flights to tiny airports.

Also consider that hangers are often huge and could be covered in solar panels making the electricity to charge the planes. Drastically reducing fuel costs.

That seems irrelevant as that electricity could be collected and used whether or not it is used for planes. So while that may be a good idea it has little if any influence on whether or not it makes sense to use electric planes.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#77

Post by Robotbeat »

rcMgD2BwE72F wrote: post #8
username_my1 wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean in Europe all capitals are within 100s/1000s of km from each others... and inner country travel is definitely within the 100km range. This has a huge potential, but I don't know if it will improve overtime, since energy density of Li-ion is a hard limit.

We already have trains, you know.

Every time someone points out how we “have trains already” it makes me think:

It’ll take less time to have operational electric passenger flights than it would to build a new high speed rail route. Particularly in the US (Europe is admittedly much better than the US in that regard).

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#78

Post by sundvor »

minitoar wrote: post #57
sandworm101 wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I take it that you have never been to Alaska. Or BC. Or Washington. Or anywhere else with more trees than people. Without bushplanes the entire resource extraction industry would grind to a halt. The conversion of a Beaver to electric follows on the past turbo-beaver conversion. It matters and is being watched by the industry.

Still has a ways to go. The eBeaver range is dramatically less.

You've got to start somewhere, right? Kudos to the developers of this.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#79

Post by neither_color »

itsrajju wrote: post #27
scrollaway wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect it was in jest, but the reason why is that he is obviously immensely passionated about aviation and logistics. He makes really, really good videos about both, I'd recommend his channel to anyone. PS, I had to vouch for your comment to reply, as it was dead. Had a look through your profile… I think there's often a lot of value in asking simple questions, but a lot of your comment history is just extremely lo…

It was indeed in jest! Wendover's videos have been consistently increasing in quality over the years. The amount of research that goes into each one is phenomenal. So much so that lately if I ever come across any aviation topic on the internet, there's already a Wendover video about it. :)

The only reason I pay for youtube premium is for creators like Wendover, Extreme Engineering, Smarter Every Day, etc. There are a lot of independent science, economics, and history channels there that are too good for YT but depend on the traffic for survival. Some have made attempts to switch to other platforms like Nebula but they dont have the mass yet.

Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements

#80

Post by jeltz »

mastax wrote: post #68
dillondoyle wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For me only if we figure out how to shorten airport time. Otherwise train in europe is easier - and usually located directly downtown or close instead of an hour in a car with traffic.

If someone gets a bomb on a train we'll figure out how to lengthen train station time...

If? Spain has security checks on major train stations which makes it slower than in other countries but still way faster than airports. Trains have way more doors for example and it is easier to get a timeslot to leave than it is to get one to taxi.
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