“Regulatory bodies have
a very hard job to do”
Llewellyn says, “Its architecture is made
up of several major components including the
2MW electric motor which will be installed
under the wing, replacing the gas turbine that
powers the fan.
“The motor will be connected to an electric
power distribution system and controller. This
will manage the power coming from the
generator – a gas turbine attached to an
electric generator and the battery. The
components of this 3,000V, 2MW system
will all be tested at our facility.”
Ground testing of the systems will start
with normal operation and then move onto
failure modes.
Converts
Electric aviation propulsion fi rm MagniX is
involved in several MEA projects. Its magni250
and magni500 high power-to-weight brushless
electric motors are powering Israel-based
Eviation’s all-electric aircraft Alice, which
is designed to take nine passengers up to
1,046km (650 miles). The motors are also used
in an electric retrofi t of operator Harbour Air’s
fl eet of de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beavers.
Harbour Air is based in Vancouver, Canada
and its fl ights average between 65-100km
(40-62 miles) and last between 15 to 25 minutes.
The CEO of MagniX, Roei Ganzarski, says that
a lot of smaller operators would prefer to
convert existing aircraft, rather than invest
millions into buying new aircraft that can
travel further than they need.
“In 2018, 5% of all global fl ights, 1.8 million
trips, were of less than 100 miles, not including
cargo and private aviation. All of the aircraft
www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com // July 2019 // 105
Q&A: DAVID ALEXANDER, DIRECTOR OF
AEROSPACE STANDARDS, SAE INTERNATIONAL
4
Standards organization SAE International is responsible for the operation
of the SAE Aerospace Standards program, which covers more electric
aircraft (MEA).
1. Collins Aerospace’s The Grid
laboratory will be dedicated to
testing electrical systems
2. The Grid can be confi gured to
run several independent tests or
one large one
3. The MagniX motor is to power
Eviation’s electric aircraft Alice
4. Roei Ganzarski, chief executive
of electric propulsion fi rm MagniX
Q: WHY STANDARDIZE?
A: Standards help mitigate the
potential for important safety
considerations from being
overlooked. They also help enable
compatibilities of form, fit, and
function from multiple vendors.
They also prescribe a minimum
expectation. Standards record
a repeatable process or method.
Q: DO YOU THINK STANDARDS
WILL PREVENT INNOVATION
FROM HAPPENING?
A: There exists a fear that standards
constrain innovation. Therefore
standards must be written in a
way that does not limit innovation.
Fortunately, most standards are
voluntary and the benefits outweigh
the limitations.
Q: WHAT STANDARDS FOR
MEA ARE BEING DEVELOPED?
A: There are several trends going
on in aerospace-electrification,
unmanned, autonomous flight,
additive manufacturing, new
propulsion systems, greater
demands for lithium batteries, high
voltage, eVTOL, simplified flight
control (enabled by fly by wire),
new markets, cyber security,
research in reducing noise (both
subsonic and supersonic).
Q: WHEN DO YOU PREDICT
THE STANDARDS FOR MEA
WILL BE COMPLETE?
A: It depends on many factors,
industry needs, aircraft type, and
mission profiles. Standards for MEA
already exist today, but there are
still many more in progress. MEA
range in scale and mission. For
example, large transport aircraft
that are considered “more electric”
are flying today. Small fully electric
airplanes are also flying. Large
hybrid electric transport airplanes
are forecasted to operate around
2050, so MEA standards will
continue to evolve.
ELECTRIC AIRCRAFT
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