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
#2Why the hell would anyone choose to take those instead of what works today?
Oh, I see: chaeper ticket prices due to taxpayer-subsidized operational costs...
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#3Small 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.
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#4Interesting that the routes they name are 119 and 78 miles.
Kinda surprised Americans have flights so short. But then again the aircraft might beat CAFE for a vehicle with a single driver in it, plus aircraft usually carry a load of cargo too, as the passengers pay for the plane to go somewhere and the cargo is the profit. Wonder how much cargo this elegy plane can carry.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_economy_in_aircraft#Commu...
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#5Interesting that the routes they name are 119 and 78 miles. Kinda surprised Americans have flights so short. But then again the aircraft might beat CAFE for a vehicle with a single driver in it, plus aircraft usually carry a load of cargo too, as the passengers pay for the plane to go somewhere and the cargo is the profit. Wonder how much cargo this elegy plane can carry. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_economy_in…
It’s 130 miles from Portland International to SeaTac, and there absolutely are a ton of Alaska Airlines flights between the two cities.
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#6Small 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.
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.
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#7Small 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.
Harbour Air in Vancouver are an example of that. Hopefully in service much earlier
https://www.flightglobal.com/aerospace/harbour-air-to-resume...
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#8Small 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.
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.
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#9Interesting that the routes they name are 119 and 78 miles. Kinda surprised Americans have flights so short. But then again the aircraft might beat CAFE for a vehicle with a single driver in it, plus aircraft usually carry a load of cargo too, as the passengers pay for the plane to go somewhere and the cargo is the profit. Wonder how much cargo this elegy plane can carry. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_economy_in…
It's all connecting to bigger flights. Plus 78-119 miles means either paying a lot of money for a cab, paying gas & parking fees for the duration of your trip at the bigger airport, or asking a friend/family member very nicely to take that trip to drop you off/pick you up. The smaller cities in question for these routes aren't going to have any sort of usable bus service for making a flight on time.
To answer your cargo question: probably not much. The distance is within a normal delivery range of some rural UPS/Fedex/DHL routes. Making people in these smaller cities go to the airport to pick up boxes just makes a lot of work for them.
source: my own experience taking loud proppy planes between Roanoke VA to Charlotte, NC to connect to a larger flight
Re: Electric aircraft set to take flight by 2026 under new agreements
#10Small 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.
Potentially they have about the same cost profile as a taxi over the same distance long term. Low noise also means access to smaller and more conveniently located airports. Initially, the novelty value will mean high demand, pricing, and relatively low cost compared to flying a small traditional plane. So great business opportunity if you can get a few planes.