AEROSPACE | ELECTRIC FLIGHT
AVIATI EAVLEIACTTIR I CN N
The world’s rst fully
electric aircraft built for commercial use
has taken to the skies, ying for 15 minutes.
The ‘electric aviation age’
has been ushered in with
the inaugural test ight of
world’s rst fully electric
commercial aircraft, taking off on the
morning of 11 December 2019 from
the Canadian city of Vancouver and
ying for 15 minutes.
The e-plane is a collaboration
between Seattle engineering rm,
magniX, that designed the plane’s
motor, and Vancouver charter
company Harbour Air, North
America’s largest seaplane airline
which offers air taxi services for half
a million people a year between
Seattle, Vancouver, Whistler ski
resort and nearby islands and coastal
communities.
“Today, we made history,” says
Greg McDougall, CEO and founder
of Harbour Air Seaplanes. “I am
incredibly proud of Harbour Air’s
leadership role in re-de ning safety
and innovation in the aviation and
seaplane industry. Canada has long
held an iconic role in the history
of aviation, and to be part of
this incredible world- rst
milestone is something we
can all be really proud of.”
Roei Ganzarski, CEO
The aeroplane is a
six-passenger vintage
1957 de Havilland Canada
DHC-2 Beaver which has
been retro tted with
magniX’s Magni500
of magniX, adds that
the technology would
mean signi cant cost
savings for airlines and
zero emissions: “The
transportation industry
and speci cally the aviation
segment – that has been, for
the most part, stagnant since the
late 1930s – is ripe for a massive
disruption. Now we are proving that
low-cost, environmentally friendly,
commercial electric air travel can be
a reality in the very near future.
“The partnership between
750hp (560kW)
propulsion system
magniX and Harbour Air is a natural
t for both companies located in the
Cascadia corridor — there is already
a large volume of travel in and around
Seattle and Vancouver, so being able
to enable travel at lower
operating costs and reducing
the environmental impact
locally makes sense.
“This signi es the start of the
electric aviation age and proves that
commercial aviation in all-electric
form can work.”
The aeroplane is a six-passenger
vintage 1957 de Havilland Canada
DHC-2 Beaver which has been
retro tted with magniX’s Magni500
750hp (560kW) propulsion system.
Ganzarski claims this is the largest
and only motor in its power class
and, except of the 260kW motor that
Siemens ew on a race plane, it is the
only electric motor to have powered
and own a commercial aircraft.
McDougall piloted the e-plane along
the Fraser River near Vancouver
international airport: “For me that
ight was just like ying a Beaver, but
it was a Beaver on electric steroids. I
actually had to back off on the power,”
he says.
“Our goal is to actually electrify
the entire eet,” adds McDougall.
Electric planes have so far
proved to be far bigger engineering
challenges than other electric
vehicles like cars and trains, because
the amount of power an electric plane
needs for take-off and to sustain ight
requires large batteries and motors
34 WWW.EUREKAMAGAZINE.CO.UK | FEBRUARY 2020
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