LarryS
This’ll make a sweet time saver between Malmo and Copenhagen … and not much more! It’s too early for April Fool’s day, isn’t it?
This’ll make a sweet time saver between Malmo and Copenhagen … and not much more! It’s too early for April Fool’s day, isn’t it?
Nothing new here. Same story different day, Everything sounds great until the money runs out. Kind of like all of those EV’s people were going to buy,
Like it or not, electric planes are coming. Yes, there will be economic failures. But the reason why electric aircraft will succeed in short and medium haul flights is the cost per seat mile. It will cost about 1/4 that of conventional aircraft. I have had an electric car (Chevy Bolt) for 5 years and 90,000 miles. The only maintenance other than tires has been a rear wiper blade and wiper fluid. It costs less than 3 cents a mile to drive. I would never buy another IC engine car.
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I also have two EV’s, an X and a 3. I also own a F-250. They all have their place. By the way, anybody who says EV’s can’t operate in a cold climate don’t know what they are talking about. I have never had a problem in Northern Ohio. You have to maintain charging when not in use which is pretty much what is recommended for all of the time. If you don’t have an at home 220 charger and you rely on super charging you are going to have issues. You just can’t be stupid about owning an EV.
Electric airplanes have a long way to catch up to the practicality of EV’s. They aren’t even close especially from a charging standpoint. I can’t imagine the amount of power required to charge these beasts to make them even close to practical. Remember, when that electric airplane is on the ground getting charged it’s losing money.
By the way, I’m sure you know those EV tires are not cheap and about half the range of conventional IC tires. EV’s do have their costs. Just make sure you have an at home generator when the world goes to hell.
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Coming?
Like it or not, electric airplanes have been tried since the 70’s. GM lost $2.5 billion on EV’s just last year so just having low maintenance is not proving to be the defining factor on sales.
I wish they would stop using the word “demonstrator” because there have been so many demonstrated failures on EV passenger aircraft that obviously that term has lost all off it’s meaning.
The worldwide electric grid is nowhere near close enough to being able to support this electric vehicle dream everyone seems to have. We all think we can plug anything we want into the wall and it will just work. Electricity as currently provided is not a boundless resource.
It’s not practical for there to be unlimited competition for electricity production and distribution, so the government will be primarily responsible for delivering this resource which is vital to all people across a wide economic spectrum. As demand drives up prices, lower income users will need a subsidy or electricity prices will have to be progressive and based on wealth and income. In order for the poor to have access to electricity, rates for the wealthy will have to be much higher. A rapid influx of low-priced Chinese EVs will hasten this.
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Nationalizing companies? Non-equal billing to ensure equity?
Pardon me if I don’t believe that the U.S. government manages projects well.
Well, there ya go again, AJ. Another anti-government remark unrelated to the discussion. We can’t wait for the next one.
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I am sufficiently good at math to have earned a doctorate in mechanical engineering from MIT. I have also worked in some of the relevant areas including motor design funded by NASA and DARPA.
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Smart people say something because they have something to say. Stupid people say something because they think they have to.
Everyone that touts electric as the way forward seems to be harping on how cheap the “fuel” is. And that’s fair… for now! Just think forward a ways, when the IC engine has been defeated, and almost no-one is buying gasoline / jet fuel any more. Governments aren’t going to simply do without the fuel taxes, we all know full well they will be taxing the electricity that we now heat our homes and transport ourselves with. At some point we’re looking at huge price increases for electricity.
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It’s not anti-government at all. It’s anti-more government.
You make good points. EVs are inherently more efficient and require much less maintenance, but, if you drive to some distant place every week, they are probably not for you. On a road trip you will not find fast chargers everywhere. We bought a Nissan Leaf 7 years ago, but it had no battery cooling system and lost battery capacity quickly. We now have a Hyundai Ioniq 6 which has a range of about 300 miles and is, by far, the best car we have ever had. Buying an EV is like buying an airplane. You need to consider your needs and choose the model that best meets your requirements. Having a 220V charger at home is very important since you can charge overnight when power costs are less and the battery will not be damaged by high daytime temperatures. It is like having a gas pump at your house! People always have to adjust to new technologies. Imagine what it would have been like to buy a gas-powered auto in 1910! (Top speed would be 20 mph and when your engine backfired terrified runaway horses would threaten the townspeople!) Eventually, the market will sort it out and the “cream” of EV propulsion will rise to the top, both in ground transportation and in aviation.
That’s a good point, Gerry. I hadn’t thought of that. Right now, all or most of our GA taxes fund our portion of the system. Passenger taxes on commercial flights fund theirs. Not sure how that will work if AVgas goes away. Probably won’t happen in my lifetime though.
Your appeal to authority doesn’t impress me. Just because something is technically possible, doesn’t necessarily make it economically viable. As an example, a lot of very brilliant engineers have worked very hard to make flying cars happen, yet no more than a handful have every been produced. I’d be willing to bet the farm on that Switchblade thing being vaporware, too.
At best, electric aircraft are going to remain extremely niche unless something truly drastic happens with the energy density of the power supply.
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I suupose people think that generating electricity comes from Unicorns and fairy dust. And, the majority of that source is by Natural Gas (43%), Nuclear Power plants (23%), Coal (17%). That alone is 83% of where power generation comes from. So, where is all this new increaese of power generation coming from? Yes, there are solar and wind. The blackout in TX in winter of 2021 came as it was cloudy and little to no wind. Over 1 million peoples homes went dark or was on a rotation of power outages lasting 4 grueling days before it was over. SO, just where is this new source of power generation coming from ?
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My power generation in the NorthWest was almost entirely hydro. On a national scale, wind has now surpassed hydro (10.2 vs 5.7% respectively). Wind and other natural forms are increasing rapidly. They will eventually take over from fossil fuels. We are starting to solve the nuclear waste problem and the fusion problem will be solved. Necessity is the Mother of invention!
The article says it’s a cross between a DASH 7 and ATR-52, except it’s a DASH 8 Q-400 fuselage and tail. Yes, it has four engines like the DASH 7, but likening it to the DHC-7 is like saying a King Air 350 looks like a Queen Air with turboprops. And the ATR reference should either say ATR 42 or 72.
Test of my new login stuff
I remember around the year 2000 when “electric radio control airplanes” were a joke, today they are the dominators in the sport. So yes it is coming just when?
Thanks, I missed that. That means you have a MORE complex aircraft than pure electric or pure ICE… and you have to lug around all that extra weight of inverters and generators and controllers and cabling, and…
So it’s worse than I first thought. Thanks for pointing that out!
The Wright Brothers were realists; that’s the only reason they succeeded over all the “dreamers” of their era. They were also steadfast Christians and an American success story.
If that offends you…so be it.
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Slip of the digit. I will fix.
Hmm…What does religion have to do with technology and invention. Last time I checked jail was full of Christians.
Just wait until your battery comes due for replacement in three years – nearly $20,000. That will add about 14 cents a mile to your average operating cost for the entire 8 years. My 300HP Turbo Mustang using superpremium only costs 17 cents a mile for fuel. Unlike the $6M man in the TV show, we are a long way from having the technology for practical electric aircraft.
