Aircraft

Largest all-electric aircraft in history will take off in 2025

Largest all-electric aircraft in history will take off in 2025
The Heart X1's first experimental flight will put the company's electric propulsion tech to the test
The Heart X1's first experimental flight will put the company's electric propulsion tech to the test
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The Heart X1's first experimental flight will put the company's electric propulsion tech to the test
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The Heart X1's first experimental flight will put the company's electric propulsion tech to the test
The X1 demonstrator is the same size as Heart's upcoming commercial aircraft, the 30-passenger ES-30
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The X1 demonstrator is the same size as Heart's upcoming commercial aircraft, the 30-passenger ES-30
The Heart X1 is slated to take flight for the first time at upstate New York’s Plattsburgh International Airport in 2025
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The Heart X1 is slated to take flight for the first time at upstate New York’s Plattsburgh International Airport in 2025
The X1 features a spartan cockpit - which is just as well, given it's a demonstrator
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The X1 features a spartan cockpit - which is just as well, given it's a demonstrator
The range per charge hasn't been confirmed for the all-electric X1 prototype, but the upcoming ES-30 commercial aircraft's hybrid system could fly for up to 250 miles per trip
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The range per charge hasn't been confirmed for the all-electric X1 prototype, but the upcoming ES-30 commercial aircraft's hybrid system could fly for up to 250 miles per trip
View gallery - 5 images

Swedish startup Heart Aerospace is gearing up for the first experimental flight of the X1 early next year, an electric demonstrator aircraft that's the same size as its upcoming 30-seater commercial plane.

"The initial experimental flight of the Heart X1 demonstrator is designed to validate the capabilities of Heart’s innovative electric propulsion technology," the company says. It'll be a major milestone for the Gothenburg-based firm, which was founded in 2019 and has since raised US$145 million for its plans to reshape regional aviation.

Heart unveiled the X1 back in September, noting that it was built to similar proportions as the ES-30, with a 32-meter (105 ft) wingspan. The test flight will take off from Plattsburgh International Airport in upstate New York, which the company found to be an ideal choice given its low air traffic density, and support for developing and testing transportation tech. Heart hasn't yet specified if the X1 will also match the ES-30's zero-emissions range of 124 miles (200 km), though.

Heart Aerospace, Heart X1 - How We Made It

The ES-30 commercial aircraft is designed to take off from runways as short as 1,100 m (3,609 ft), thanks to its high-torque electric motors and turbo propellers, and is going to feature a hybrid system to allow for a total range of nearly 250 miles (400 km). With that relatively short range and its limited seating capacity, Heart isn't looking to replace major airliners. Instead, the focus is on connecting smaller 'pocket airports' with roughly 2 acres of space in underserved communities.

The Heart X1 is slated to take flight for the first time at upstate New York’s Plattsburgh International Airport in 2025
The Heart X1 is slated to take flight for the first time at upstate New York’s Plattsburgh International Airport in 2025

There are a few other ventures aiming to make emission-free commercial flight a reality. You've got Swiss outfit ZeroAvia working on a hydrogen-electric hybrid amphibious aircraft for use in island regions.

Back in January, Elysian claimed its 1960s-inspired aircraft design with a small fuselage and long, low-mounted wings would work well enough to carry 90 passengers in a battery-powered plane. A few months ago, the Dutch startup noted that 10 critical bottlenecks like battery charging times and propeller-wing integrations would not prove to be "show-stoppers." If it's right about that and all the hard work to follow over the next several years, Elysian will take to the skies by 2033.

For its part, Heart has its work work cut out for it ahead of its first X1 flight. The company noted the aircraft is "undergoing extensive tests of critical systems to ensure a safe and successful flight." We'll also see a Heart X2 incorporate learnings from the first demonstrator, and test the firm's "Independent Hybrid propulsion" system in 2026. That's a whole lot of stuff to get right before the company's commercial debut in 2028.

The range per charge hasn't been confirmed for the all-electric X1 prototype, but the upcoming ES-30 commercial aircraft's hybrid system could fly for up to 250 miles per trip
The range per charge hasn't been confirmed for the all-electric X1 prototype, but the upcoming ES-30 commercial aircraft's hybrid system could fly for up to 250 miles per trip

If you can't wait that long to see what Heart's up to, grab a copy of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and pilot the ES-30 from the comfort of your own home instead.

Source: Heart Aerospace

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7 comments
7 comments
Uncle Anonymous
Two things get they will have to get right before the company's commercial debut in 2028 is the charging infrastructure at the airports they plan to operate from. Plus, they will have to deal the aircraft downtime while they recharge. For example, a de Havilland Dash 8 Q-400 takes roughly six minutes to refuel from empty, so that begs the question of how long one of these aircraft will take to recharge their batteries. The problem is that every moment that an aircraft sits idle at a ramp charging station is a moment the aircraft isn't earning its keep.
martinwinlow
@ Uncle Anonymous - Er... obviously...? But with e-cars now being able to charge at a rate of about 300kW and trucks at 3 times that, I don't see this as being a terribly significant issue. It won't make sense operating this sort of aircraft at anything other than a relatively small proportion of locations - not until battery technology improves very significantly, at least. So, the infrastructure cost would be way less than that of electrifying the major road network, for example. Likewise the routes involved will be amenable to relatively slow turnarounds but, in any event, charging speeds are improving all the time.
martinwinlow
Personally, I think all this time effort and money would be far better spent on road-based transport electrification given that global CO2 contribution from the aviation industry is about 2% Vs the *40%* from road transport. So, let's deal with the low-hanging fruit, first, and then worry about aircraft once that 40% CO2 reduction is in the bag.
Laszlo
Engineers are pioneers. Investors are heroes!
Towerman
At UNCLE,
First, the refueling cart needs ro be connected and configured for refueling amount of the Q400, that takes longer than 6 minutes.

Second the electric aircraft requires roughly 3 minutes, no need to charge just swap out the battery.

Third no lengthy pre inspections or high maintenence in electrics, it's a dream come true and its unfolding now.

Towerman
@martin
No need to wait technology that can benefit both industries sooner rather than later needs to be implemented right away.
Uncle Anonymous
martinwinlow - You wrote: "But with e-cars now being able to charge at a rate of about 300kW and trucks at 3 times that, I don't see this as being a terribly significant issue." It looks like you have no idea about how slim the margins on air travel are. 🙂

Let's pretend you own a short haul airline and your short-haul airliners will fly one-hour segments (one airport to another airport) all day, starting at 8 AM and finishing at 10 PM. If the turnaround time is roughly 1 hour, the daily operational window will get you seven flights (and one hour spare). However, if the turnaround time was shortened by 8 minutes or 13%, the airline would be able to operate an extra flight that day, potentially increasing the revenues by tens of thousands of dollars. This is why every minute counts when it comes to turn around time. FYI, airlines like Ryanair and Southwest take an average of 30 minutes for their turn around. Now consider how much a 1 hour recharging time would cost in loss of revenue.