QXDX
Well-Known Member
Florida Tech becomes first U.S. university to own, fly an electric plane
The FAA will receive data from the first 50 hours of flight.
The future of general aviation?
It's FL, so it's NatGas powered.
They really need to up their solar game there. Such an unused resource.
But cool on the electric plane! Some partners and I are looking at buying a Pipistrel Virus. 165kt cruise at 4gal/hr!
Fix
I could see that airplane as a primary trainer, but with a restriction limiting the certificate holder to electric powerplants only. Aspiring professionals would at some point have to transition to reciprocating or turbine powerplants.What do they go for? (ballpark)
I can't imagine their electric trainer isn't the future of primary training.
The article mentions 50 minutes of flight time with 10 minutes reserve. I wonder if that is with a full suite of avionics.
I could see that airplane as a primary trainer, but with a restriction limiting the certificate holder to electric powerplants only. Aspiring professionals would at some point have to transition to reciprocating or turbine powerplants.
The article mentions 50 minutes of flight time with 10 minutes reserve. I wonder if that is with a full suite of avionics.
I’m thinking the same thing. 10 minute reserve isn’t much if the one runway gets closed and you have to find another airport.Curious how the FAA treats the "land with 30-minutes fuel available" bit with this.
It's FL, so it's NatGas powered.
They really need to up their solar game there. Such an unused resource.
But cool on the electric plane! Some partners and I are looking at buying a Pipistrel Virus. 165kt cruise at 4gal/hr!
Fix
I could see that airplane as a primary trainer, but with a restriction limiting certificate holder to electric powerplants only.
The article mentions 50 minutes of flight time with 10 minutes reserve. Is that with full avionics functionality?
Ok, so it can fly 30 minutes with a 30 minute reserve. This is not the end-all of electric aviation. With R&D there will be improvements.Curious how the FAA treats the "land with 30-minutes fuel available" bit with this.
Curious name for the current times.
Solar means nothing without a bucket to put it in.
Ok, so it can fly 30 minutes with a 30 minute reserve. This is not the end-all of electric aviation. With R&D there will be improvements.
I can't speak to the engineering problems. I just know that in the history of all things that work, there was once a time when that thing didn't work.You're going to need more than improvements. You're going to need something more than evolutionary. It's going to need to be revolutionary.
Eeeking out a couple of percent in the airframe isn't gong to help and neither will a hyper-efficient motor (they're already there).
This is a battery problem, plain and simple, and for now, there is no solution.
In California our electrical grid is already overwhelmed, they recently passed legislation that is supposed to phase out internal combustion vehicles by 2035. Where is all of this power supposed to come from?I can't speak to the engineering problems. I just know that in the history of all things that work, there was once a time when that thing didn't work.
The larger issue is that it's still a fossil fuel powered vehicle. Unless you're going to hook the battery to a solar panel or windmill, you have to burn fossil fuels to get the electricity for it to run.
In California our electrical grid is already overwhelmed, they recently passed legislation that is supposed to phase out internal combustion vehicles by 2035. Where is all of this power supposed to come from?
The bigger question is. If they shut down the natural gas storage facilities at Porter Ranch, Honor Rancho and Playa Del Ray, how will Edison generate electricity?In California our electrical grid is already overwhelmed, they recently passed legislation that is supposed to phase out internal combustion vehicles by 2035. Where is all of this power supposed to come from?