Eviation – Meet Alice

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It is so cool that we had to make an exception and include a commercial aircraft. Do not see why electric propulsion systems cannot be applied to private aircraft.  

Alice is an all-electric aircraft and does not require any fuel. It can carry nine passengers and two crew up to 650 miles at a cruising speed of 240 knots at 10,000 feet, on one battery charge. It can add an hour of flying time after 30 minutes of charging on the ground. More than 60% of Alice’s maximum takeoff weight consists of the battery, which tips the scales at some 8,200 pounds.  

Alice was designed to be electric from the scratch: it has three distributed propellers and blends the latest innovations in airframe design and lightweight materials, battery technology and integration, thermal management and autonomy. It is a true first-of-its-kind.

With a full suite of Honeywell fly-by-wire avionics, Alice is also said to be one of the easiest commercial aircraft to fly. It is also very reliable — while it has three motors, the aircraft can continue to fly with just the rear motor engaged. If one wing-mounted motor fails, the other will be disabled to maintain stability, and additional electric power can be diverted to the rear motor so the aircraft can continue its flight. Eviation is aiming to receive FAA certification as soon as 2021, with the aircraft entering commercial service in 2022 with short-haul operator Cape Air.

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