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Agreed. Legally, GA aircraft under visual flight rules must have at least 30 mins reserve so currently this thing wouldn't be allowed to fly! Battery powered a

by tjmc 17y ago

Agreed. Legally, GA aircraft under visual flight rules must have at least 30 mins reserve so currently this thing wouldn't be allowed to fly! Battery powered aircraft aren't completely impractical though. This Chinese electric 2 seater has a 40KW brushless electric motor, 400lbs of payload and up to 3 hours of endurance: http://www.flyingmag.com/pilot-reports/lsa/sport/electrics-emerge http://www.flyingmag.com/pilot-reports/lsa/sport/electrics-e... The downside is it's slow (60mph), but if the engineering challenges for lithium-air batteries are ever solved you'd have a serious competitor to piston aircraft. Not to mention that electric engines are far more reliable than piston ICEs and you don't have to worry about fuel fires (just don't use Sony batteries ;-)

sailormoon 17y ago
electric engines are far more reliable than piston ICEs So are turbines, by a wide margin. Electric motors powered by a gas turbine would be a pretty damn reliable system. I do not trust reciprocating engines as far as I can throw them! I know the perverse regulatory environment that has lead to the stagnation of technology in GA but still. Not completely dead, though, it seems - thanks for that link. Most impressive. $89k! Sheesh, that's almost regular-joe level!