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This electric aircraft could jump-start the future of flight - CNET

This electric aircraft could jump-start the future of flight - CNET

This electric aircraft could jump-start the future of flight - CNET
May 27, 2020 1 min, 31 secs

You may not fly in an electric plane for decades, but by testing new zero-emissions aircraft now, a Seattle company wants you to be excited for that day to come.

Powered by Magnix's motor, this Cessna "eCaravan" would be the largest electric aircraft to fly so far.

And Thursday morning, the Seattle-based manufacturer of electric motors hopes to nudge the future of air travel forward when it sends another airplane on a zero-emissions flight.

Unlike the experimental aircraft that have dominated electric flight so far, the Cessna Caravan 208 that will carry Magnix's motor over Moses Lake, Washington is a nine-passenger widely-used commuter airliner that's been in production since 1982.

By retrofitting an existing small plane, Magnix's goal is to show that commercial electric flight is possible now, even if a greener flying future with 100-passenger aircraft is still decades away.

"Up until that point we either saw very small electric aircraft or you heard a lot about why it's impossible," Ganzarski said.

Just as electric car manufacturers grapple with range anxiety, Magnix has to prove that the lithium ion batteries powering the motors, which are similar to those used in cars, can deliver feasible flight times. .

Following more test flights with the Beaver, the Caravan and other aircraft (the Eviation Alice, a nine-passenger commuter aircraft that's set to fly later this year, will use Magnix's 375-horsepower Magni250 motor), Ganzarski says his company's next step is to win FAA certification for its technology

(The company is also developing a 1,500-horsepower motor for larger aircraft yet to come.)

Built by Israel-based, Eviation Aircraft, the Magnix-powered Alice is supposed to take its first electric flight this year. 

As for when we can see larger electric aircraft in the skies, Ganzarski said a zero-emissions plane capable of carrying 19 passengers is 10 years away and one carrying 100 passengers is about 30 to 40 years away

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