All-electric jet firm Eviation announces US regional airline as first customer, predicts delivery in 2022 (Isabella & Chiara)
https://www.eviation.co/company/
VIDEO ABOUT THE PLANE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyQaWEBGNxg
PUBLISHED TUE, JUN 18 20196:43 AM EDT UPDATED THU, JUN 27 20194:33 AM EDT
By David Reid
All-electric jet firm Eviation announces US regional airline as first customer, predicts delivery in 2022
· Venture capital-backed Eviation is developing a nine-seat electric aircraft.
· The firm sees regional travel as being under served by aviation.
· A prototype of its electric plane has been unveiled at the Paris Air Show.
PARIS — The Israeli start-up Eviation announced at the Paris Air Show that U.S regional airline Cape Air is to buy its electric aircraft.
Eviation is developing a nine-passenger aircraft designed to fly up to 650 miles at around 240 knots (276 miles per hour). A commercial jet would cruise around 500 miles per hour. The electric plane — called Alice with a prototype being unveiled at the show this week — is designed for the sort of distances usually conducted by train.
Cape Air is set to buy a “double-digit” number of the plane which has a list price of around $4 million each. It’s expected that any customer would be able to negotiate a smaller figure.
1. What is new? For whom is it new? How new is it?
The first electric plane was introduced at the Paris Air Show. It is new for the market, for the passengers, pilots, producers of airplanes.
The CEO added the plane should satisfy FAA concerns that it might create a backlog of training for pilots, as it was “probably one of the easiest planes to fly,” adding “this is one of the specimens that the FAA wants to see happen.”
2. What type of innovation?
Technical. Innovation in electric and sustainable air transportation.
Dimension of Innovation?
Radical for passengers and airplane producers.
Radical for passengers and airplane producers.
3. What can you find about the background of the innovation? Who was the innovator? Story of the invention? How has it been generated?
The E-plane was invented by an Israeli start-up called Eviation.
Our Vision: Change the way people travel regionally through affordable, sustainable aviation.
Our Mission: Build aircraft that create new market opportunities, challenging the limits of air travel use in a scalable, sustainable, and economically viable way.
Why Electric? Just as in ground transportation, electric propulsion reduces the energy usage, maintenance costs and environmental impact of air transit, while providing a smoother, safer passenger experience.
Alice is not a great plane we managed to make electric. It’s a great plane because it’s electric.
EVIATION
We believe the new era of air mobility will be defined by those dedicated to bringing engineering innovation and the pioneering spirit of aviation to life, every day. Composed of talented individuals who are ready to take on the all-electric challenge, Eviation’s team is prepared to forever change the way people move. By creating something that has never been done before, Eviation is proud to be electrifying the revolution and ushering in the future of flight.
Leadership
With a track record of multidisciplinary innovation, we are a team of entrepreneurs and engineers committed to building disruptive solutions that work and improve our world.
The company’s chief executive, Omer Bar-Yohay, told a press conference Tuesday that he expected to receive certification by late 2021, with deliveries predicted for 2022.
“This aircraft is not some future maybe. It is there, ready and waiting,” he said.
Bar-Yohay cited the contributions from Honeywell who built the plane’s controls as well as Siemens, and magniX who provided the electric motor and related functions.
Bar-Yohay said the plane would now travel to Arizona in the United States where it would be flight tested before being put forward for certification with the U.S. FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).
The Eviation boss said that eventually, future planes would be built in the United States.
Most of Eviation’s funding is from Clermont Group, the private investment fund of Singapore-based billionaire Richard Chandler. Clermont has given Eviation $76 million in exchange for a 70% stake in the company, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission dated January 3.
In a letter to staff, Chandler said commercial-scale electric aircraft would “change the culture of air travel for future generations,” and that the aerospace industry was entering a new era.
“45% of all flights are under 500 miles – approximately the distance from London to Zurich, or New York to Detroit. This puts almost half of all global flights within the range of an electric motor.”
Possible learnings about the innovation process (what does it need to develop an innovation like this?)
Nowadays it is important to establish sustainable innovations, especially in transportations. As tourism is growing and so does air traffic, sustainable solutions in this industry are very important.
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