Electric Aircraft

Short takeoff and landing aircraft might prove an efficient alternative to eVTOLs in the early days of electric flight, using super-short runways – maybe even on top of buildings – while flying much farther on a charge than the eVTOLs.

From 1935 to 1948, French manufacturer Avions Mauboussin was known for its light sporting aircraft. Its name has now been revived, by a French startup that plans on building hybrid STOL (short take-off and landing) airplanes.

Lilium is one of a number of startups working to make flying taxis a reality, and is now offering folks a new look at its vision by divulging plans for its first “vertiport” planned for Orlando, Florida, in 2025.

Every pound counts when you're trying to squeeze range out of an electric aircraft, so when Minneapolis company H3X says it can deliver continuous power at around a third the weight of current motors, it could be huge for clean aviation.

Although there are now a few different crop-spraying multicopter drones, fixed-wing drones are faster and have a longer battery range. That's where the recently US-certified autonomous electric Pelican crop duster comes into the picture.

Paris Region, ADP and RATP are eyeing the development of an urban air mobility branch ahead of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, and have joined forces with German air taxi startup Volocopter to make it happen.

ZeroAvia says it completed the world's first hydrogen-fuel-cell powered flight of a commercial-grade aircraft when a modified Piper M-class six-seater plane took off from its facility in England, and completed a full-pattern circuit before landing.

Having tested out its aircraft in Dubai, Singapore, Helsinki and Germany, Volocopter is now turning its attention to Japan through a new agreement with Japan Airlines, and is preparing for a commercial launch in the country within a few years.

Last year, we heard how Rolls-Royce was developing what it claims will be the world's fastest electric airplane, the ACCEL. Now, the company has announced that it has completed ground testing of the technology that will be used in the aircraft.

After taking to the air in April on what was billed Japan's first manned multirotor test flight, Tokyo-based SkyDrive has now revealed that its new slicker SD-03 model made its first public demonstration flight earlier this week.

British company Oxis says it's developed safe, high-density lithium-sulfur battery chemistry and will supply Texas Aircraft Manufacturing with a 90-kWh, next-gen battery pack to power the eColt, an electric aircraft with a two hour, 230-mile range.

An unmanned, solar-powered aircraft designed for high-altitude communications has edged closer to the real-world applications, with the HAPSMobile Sunglider successfully completing another round of flight testing in New Mexico.