Electric Aviation

André Borschberg, a Swiss entrepreneur, is working on getting electric motors in plains. Last summer he designed and flew the solar impulse 2 which was a electric glider powered by solar panels that covered the wings. The Solar impulse 2 flew all the way around the world while being fully electric. André has now launched his new company, H55 and they have announced there first Aircraft, the Aero1.  This plane is not a new design though, it is just a retrofitted single seat aerobatic flyer. It Might not take off and land vertically like the (VTOL) that Uber wants, although that not what André was designing it for. He wants his planes to be realistic, not futuristic. Rather that producing airplanes, H55 plans to make electric propulsion systems. This way they could make the systems and then have people introduce them to there own airplanes. H55 says the reason that they are designing electric propulsion systems is "there Simple". No more checking oil, fuel levels, or preheating the engine just turn it on and fly. 

LINK

Question 1 - What are your feelings on electric flight? 

- I feel like electric flight is the future for all aviation. Its more efficient, better for the environment, and like H55 its simple.

Question 2 - Do you think that using old planes to test there theory is a good idea or bad and why?

- I think its a good idea, by doing this they are wasting less time making new planes which would leave more time to streamline there equipment.

You need to be a member of History 360 to add comments!

Join History 360

Replies are closed for this discussion.

Replies

  • This is a huge step in technology and I believe that this invention will bring us so much further in our knowledge about aviation. I think that electric airplanes are the future of all aviation. It's way better for our environment, it's more beneficial, it's easier, and it's more efficient. I think that it is a good idea to use older models. That way they don't have to waste money or time on creating a new model and they can concentrate on the technology of the airplane etc. You have to consider that this is the first step towards electric aviation, and that means that in the future they will probably make different models. They just started and I think that we can expect a lot to come from H55.

  • I believe this is a good idea towards aviation because it is easy and efficient according to the creators. Using old planes while putting the new technology in them is a good idea I think. If they could fly well enough with a gas engine it should be able to fly even better with the electric engine. 

  • 1. I think it would save the environment and could be beneficial for faster and more efficient air travel. I wouldn't fully rely on this transportation yet though because there could be many malfunctions as it is pretty new.

    2. Yeah sort of because even though not all of the variables are the same, they still have a lot to compare to. I think it is a good idea.

  • I feel like electric flights would be smoother, possibly safer, and could help save the o-zone layer from all of the pollution produced by normal planes. I think that it is a good idea because if it doesn't work at first, there would be no use to use a new plane and ruin it. 

  • I think that electric flights are cool and are probably way more environmental friendly, and it will defiantly decrease the amount of pollution in the air. I think that using old planes to test their theory is a good and bad idea because they are saving money, but it could crash or something could go wrong because of the age of the plane.

  • The first electric car has been around for over a century. It's surprising  that they haven't become more popular.  Electric cars have their benefits, saving money, saving fuel,  etc. It would be a huge change for the entire world to switch over and would take some time. It could possibly be the future for all aviation. 

  • I think it is a good idea, it will be more environmentally good, less pollution. Is it safer as well. Probably a bad idea, something could go bad when they are in the air. The older planes will be less reliable

  • My fear would be that is would run out of power other than that I really like the idea. I think using old planes would be better because you could save a lot of money

  • The first electric car built in the United States was made in 1891.  Considering that the electric car has been around for over a century, I'm surprised that they haven't become more popular.  I know that electric cars have their benefits, but it would be a huge change for the entire world to switch over.  For the same reason, I feel that it would be difficult for plane companies to switch to electric planes.  However, like you said, it could be the future for all aviation.  I also think that using old planes to test their theory is a good idea because it is saving time and money.  

  • I think flying with electricity will be better for the environment overall, because it will not release many, or if any emissions into the atmosphere. I think it's better to test on old planes rather and new ones, so it will give them time to perfect their method of electric flight, and if it works, then they can pitch their idea to a really big airline, and if they liked it, then they'd make a lot of money on both ends.

This reply was deleted.
eXTReMe Tracker