The fifty-fifth Paris Air Show got underway under a bright blue sky on June 16, with commercial and general aviation aircraft side by side with defense, space, and advanced air mobility vehicles on the flight line at storied Paris-Le Bourget Airport, northeast of Paris.
Flying an uncrewed, large-scale prototype, a Canadian manufacturer successfully demonstrated the vertical takeoff, transition to stable wing-borne flight, and vertical landing capabilities of its Cavorite X7 on May 15.
Electric aircraft manufacturer Beta Technologies conducted its first demonstration flight with passengers on June 3. During what the company called the first landing of an advanced air mobility flight at a New York City airport, Beta’s Alia fixed-wing aircraft, which operates conventionally from runways, touched down at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
The first thing you notice about Beta Technologies’ electric-powered Alia CX300 aircraft is its acoustic signature as the aircraft taxis to the ramp. Gone are the familiar lumpety-lump Harley-esque exhaust notes of an avgas-powered airplane, replaced instead by a hushed whine generated by an electric equivalent of 500 horsepower to a five-blade, fixed-pitch composite Hartzell propeller.
California-based Ampaire Inc. announced it has earned the first-of-its-kind FAA certification basis approval for a hybrid electric aircraft powertrain and remains on track for certification by the end of 2026.
The Pulitzer Electric Aircraft Race is scheduled for October 10 through 13 at Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport in Springfield, Ohio, marking 100 years since the last race in the original 1920s series was run.
Diamond Aircraft, a subsidiary of China-based Wanfeng Auto Holding Group Co. Ltd’s aircraft division, has joined the race to produce a new generation of electric air taxis with the acquisition of German developer Volocopter.
Electric aircraft might conjure thoughts of huge investments, impracticality, broken promises, and a distant future. But California-based Ampaire is different, or at least, seems to be. Their goal? Bring a hybrid electric future to the market as soon as practical with available technology.
After conceding insolvency in October, the promise of receiving substantial funding from a consortium of investors, the Mobile Uplift Corporation, on December 24 seemed like a Christmas miracle for electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft manufacturer Lilium Aerospace. However, on February 21 the company filed for insolvency again.
All-electric and hydrogen-powered aircraft could one day bring order-of-magnitude improvements in carbon emission reductions compared to today’s current thermal engines. But these technologies still require decades of research and development.
According to a press release, Lilium GmbH —among a handful of companies to create prototypes of the next generation of aircraft—has conceded insolvency and its board approved application for self-administration for its business units.
Hybrid electric power company Ampaire opened its new headquarters to a warm welcome at Long Beach (Daugherty Field) in Long Beach, California, on August 27.
Electric Power Systems Inc., a Logan, Utah, company developing electric aircraft propulsion components, has introduced a battery that yields up to 90 minutes of flight time.
Electric aerospace developer Beta Technologies achieved a milestone when its electric vertical takeoff and landing Alia 250e prototype transitioned from powered-lift flight to wing-borne flight and back again, with a pilot on board, in Plattsburgh, New York.
History tells us it takes more than good aircraft to launch a successful air transport operation. So as electric vertical takeoff and landing pioneers move further into flight testing and closer to certification, they are increasingly focusing on what some might call the hard part: developing the vast, complex infrastructure needed to support them.
The Latvian airline airBaltic signed a letter of intent to acquire three electric-powered Diamond Aircraft eDA40s for its airBaltic Training unit as part of the company’s strategy to expand its training fleet while increasing sustainability in its operations.
Textron eAviation, the business unit that includes the Pipistrel brand, bought a German firm specialized in creating flight control and other systems that enable aircraft to fly with or without pilots.
Nonprofit aviation education and flight school organization New Vision Aviation can now provide flight training in the group’s four Pipistrel Electro trainers thanks to an eight-year public-private collaboration to prove electric aircraft can be suitable for flight training.
Seaplane airline Harbour Air said it signed a letter of intent to purchase 50 magni650 electric motors from magniX, an aviation propulsion company, marking a major step in Harbour Air’s plan to convert its fleet of 45 de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver aircraft to electric power.
Electric aerospace developer Beta Technologies achieved a milestone when its electric vertical takeoff and landing Alia 250 prototype transitioned from powered-lift flight to wing-borne flight and back again, with a pilot on board, in Plattsburgh, New York.
Aero Friedrichshafen, Germany’s general aviation convention, was the venue for a couple of interesting new developments possibly impacting the U.S. market, the most prominent among them announced by Tecnam Aircraft, Diamond Aircraft, and Elixir Aircraft.
The FAA on March 1 granted Textron eAviation an exemption to allow the Velis Electro to be certified, operated, and maintained under a special airworthiness certificate in the light sport aircraft (LSA) category.
Ampaire CEO Kevin Noertker said a recent ground test of the Eco Caravan on sustainable aviation fuel demonstrates how hybrid-electric propulsion can amplify the benefits of sustainable fuels.
Light electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) manufacturer Pivotal, formerly known as Opener, has started selling Helix, the company’s first scalable production aircraft.
Electric aircraft manufacturer Joby Aviation, along with FBO chain and aviation infrastructure provider Atlantic Aviation, announced a plan to bring electric charging infrastructure to New York and Southern California in support of Joby’s future air taxi service.
No magnetos, mixture knob, or fuel flow gauge. Pull the power lever back to idle on the ramp and the propeller stops; no need to keep the spark plugs firing. But apart from a few details of powerplant management, the first certified electric airplane in the world flies a lot like other light trainers. Just quieter.
One of these things is not like the others. A light sport aircraft with a glider-thin T-tail and high-voltage symbols on the side, the Pipistrel Velis Electro stands out against a backdrop of Cessnas on the Textron Aviation Employees’ Flying Club ramp at Beech Factory Airport (BEC).