EV I ATION A L ICE
businessjetinteriorsinternational.com
OCTOBER 2019 043
Alice’s 900kwH
battery could power
an average 40W
light bulb for
22,500 hours
THE LIGHTWEIGHT INTERIOR
CREATED FOR ALICE, A NINE-SEAT
ALL-ELECTRIC COMMUTER JET
displayed this year had
been built over the last
two and a half years, with
the help of 164 suppliers
from 21 countries.
Honeywell was one of
the earliest suppliers to join
the programme, taking
responsibility for the lightweight,
fly-by-wire flight control computer.
The whole aircraft will be certified
under the FAA’s Part 23 rule for general
aviation certification.
WEIGHTY ISSUE
Weight drives choices for the interior.
Ziman explains that for the cabin, “all the
materials are being chosen carefully to
meet our high standards, while keeping
the aircraft weight as low as possible for
maximum efficiency”.
Eviation would not confirm whether
or not the aircraft will have a toilet, the
absence of which would be a major
weight-saving. One certain omission is
any sort of barrier or bulkhead between
the cockpit and the cabin. The layout
features the two pilot seats with nine
passenger seats immediately behind them
in a 1-1 configuration with a centre aisle,
and a ninth seat opposite the cabin door.
THE STATS
The Eviation Alice is a nine-passenger commuter aircraft,
although an executive version is also planned. The aircraft
can be flown by two pilots. The airframe is 40ft (12.2m) long,
has a 52.8ft (16.1m) wingspan, and a maximum take-off
weight of 13,999 lb (6,350kg). Alice’s cruise altitude will be
10,000ft (3,048m) and its maximum altitude will be 30,000ft
(9,144m). It can reach a speed of 260kts (482km/h).
The aircraft employs a 8,200 lb (3,727kg) lithium-ion
battery to achieve a range of 650 nautical miles (1,204km).
The aircraft uses distributed propulsion, with one main
pusher propeller at the tail and two pusher propellers at
the wingtips to reduce drag and improve efficiency. Each
propeller is powered by a 260kW electric motor. Only one
propeller is needed to maintain cruise flight.
While Eviation is an Israeli company, its factory will
be based in Prescott, Arizona. The aircraft has a list price
of US$4m (€3.6m).
/businessjetinteriorsinternational.com