The fundamental problem with electric aviation is the terrible specific energy & energy density of existing battery technology. Just for a very rough order-of-m

The fundamental problem with electric aviation is the terrible specific energy & energy density of existing battery technology. Just for a very rough order-of-magnitude comparison, the most energy-dense batteries in common use today (lithium polymer cells) hold somewhere around 0.2-1 MJ/kg and 1-3 MJ/L [1]. Jet-A (kerosene) on the other hand holds somewhere around 40 MJ/kg [2]. Some of that might be recovered by using efficient electric motors instead of combustion engines, which are typically pretty inefficient, but even then we're still looking at a >4x decrease in fuel range. Notably though, these guys have pretty modest goals: >The 30-passenger planes will be driven by electric motors with battery-derived energy, allowing the planes to have a fully electric range of 200 kilometers (124 miles). The planes will also include a reserve-hybrid engine powered by sustainable aviation fuel, allowing it to have an extended range of up to 400 kilometers with a full flight. Energy lost to drag goes up with the cube of velocity, so flying slow, light planes over short hops might be doable with fully electric engines and modern batteries. As a side note, it's especially telling that they'll fly with a reserve engine that uses hydrocarbon fuel. This might be done for safety, but I would suspect it's more about making them economically viable while allowing them to be painted as a green alternative. Most routes will likely require at least some fuel consumption. 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_polymer_battery https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_polymer_battery 2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerosene https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerosene