Category Archives: ELECTRIC
Electro Flight
On the horizon: A new spark By Thomas A. Horne Photography by Chris Rose Electrically powered light airplanes have caught the imagination. Comparatively inexpensive to operate and emission-free, a new crop of electric designs have moved into the spotlight. Are they ready to go to market? Are they too flimsy to attract a meaningful customer [...]
The Chevy Volt of airplanes, the Volta Volare GT4, is ready to fly
The Chevy Volt of airplanes, the Volta Volare GT4, is ready to fly By Bill Howard on May 1, 2012 at 8:51 am 7 Comments Share This Article Seriously: electric airplanes. They’re about to take off. Testing begins this spring on the Volta Volare GT4. A recent story in Popular Science spiked interest in the four-passenger carbon [...]
Green Flight Challenge Final Results
by DEAN SIGLER on 10/13/2011 Steve Williams, CAFE Foundation board member and e-totalizer guru, released the final results for the NASA Green Flight Challenge sponsored by Google, held at the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport from September 25 through October 1, 2011. Figures show a profound difference between the two electric winners and the two gas-powered and hybrid [...]
NASA Adds Some Numbers to Green Flight Challenge
by DEAN SIGLER on 10/11/2011 NASA’s Mark Moore sends this link to NASA’s press release on the recent NASA Centennial Challenge Green Flight Challenge sponsored by Google. The CAFE Foundation organized and managed the event. “Today we’ve shown that electric aircraft have moved beyond science fiction and are now in the realm of practice.” – Chief technologist at NASA Joe [...]
EnerSys, GAIA launch space, naval application lithium-ion JV in Germany
By Eric LovedayRSS feed Taking lithium-ion batteries to heights never before reached is the goal of EnerSys and GAIA. The dynamic duo just entered into a definitive agreement to launch a large-format lithium-ion battery cell joint venture in Germany, where the focus will be on developing power storage devices for aerospace, naval, defense and other “specialty” [...]
Electric Planes flying at Green Flight Challenge!
We’re here at the NASA CAFE Green Flight Challenge on the third and final day of testing. The initial thirteen teams are down to four participants – three competitors and one demonstrator. Two all-electric planes are flying: e-Genius from Germany and Pipistrel Taurus G4 from Slovenia. An efficient piston plane, the PhoEnix from the Chech Republic, [...]
eGenius electric aircraft makes successful maiden flight
By Darren Quick The electric powered eGenius concept demonstrator on its successful maiden flight An electric powered aircraft demonstrator has taken to the air for the first time with a 20-minute flight from Mindelheim, Germany. Intended for entry in the NASA funded CAFE 2011 Green Flight Challenge, the eGenius concept was designed by a team from the [...]
11.04.2011 – Solar Impulse at the Paris Air Show
The organisers of the International Paris Air Show are delighted and extremely proud to announce the presence of the solar aeroplane SOLAR IMPULSE as the show’s “Special Guest”. Air show premiere This will be the first air show appearance made by the revolutionary aeroplane, culmination of a genuine human and technological adventure, which made a [...]
Electric Flight Symposiums Set, Prize Offered
The CAFE Foundation has scheduled its fifth annual Electric Aircraft Symposium for April 29 to 30, in Santa Rosa, Calif., and EAA has announced it will hold its second World Symposium on Electric Aircraft and a prize competition during EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh. The CAFE event will feature presentations by a [...]
Sonex e-flight Initiative
The e-Flight electric system schematic (top, right) illustrates the basic layout of the electric powerplant installation. The flight performance chart (bottom, right) shows near-term battery endurance estimates vs. various airframe mission profiles. The e-Flight Initiative research and development project to develop electric powered flight continues to make steady progress in the Hornets’ Nest. Although the [...]
