An Electric EEL with a hybrid electric motor has successfully flown 137 km from Exeter, Devonshire to Newquay, Cornwall. The plane with two pilots spent 25 minutes in the air, the main part of the flight took place at an altitude of 1.5 km with a speed of slightly less than 200 km / h. The tests were carried out with the support of the British government as part of a program to move to greener air travel, according to The Guardian.
The Electric EEL has been converted into a hybrid from a six-seat Cessna 337 by California-based Ampaire, which received £ 2.4 million from the British authorities as part of its £ 30 million Future Flights program. The electric motor installed on the aircraft gives thrust to the nose pulling propeller, while the second propeller – the tail thrusting propeller – is provided by a conventional jet fuel engine. With such an installation, the electric motor carries the main load during takeoff and climb, that is, when a conventional aircraft spends the most fuel and produces the most harmful emissions. According to experts, the Electric EEL climbs faster than a conventional aircraft of this class, moving along a steeper trajectory. In addition, it produces less noise and is cheaper to use. Ampaire estimates that flying this plane will cost 30% less than flying a regular light plane.
This is not the first successful flight of the Electric EEL, which was previously tested in California and Hawaii, and then was flown to the UK, where it was also tested under various conditions. The current flight was not only a test, but also demonstrative, among the guests of the ceremonial start were the Minister of Aviation and the Minister of Business of Great Britain.
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