A new era of aviation? Someday. Maybe.
<p>An all-electric airplane called "Alice" took its first flight on Tuesday, looking to become the first all-electric commercial airplane.</p>
Take-off 7:10 a.m.
— Dominic Gates (@dominicgates) September 27, 2022
Alice is flying pic.twitter.com/V7sIpPGfpB
From the Seattle Times, the electric future remains a long way off, due to batteries:
It’s powered by just over 21,500 small Tesla-style battery cells that, at just over 4 tons, make up fully half the weight of the carbon composite airframe.
... In an interview in Moses Lake on the eve of first flight, Eviation CEO Greg Davis conceded that the prototype that took off Tuesday is not the design the company will build later. He said Eviation needs still-to-be-developed advances in battery technology to make its planes commercially viable.
“Are the batteries on the prototype aircraft capable of propelling the certification aircraft, capable of providing sufficient energy? The answer is no, absolutely not,” Davis said.
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