We think of disruption to electric cars, not batteries in this instance. Electric planes will need their energy on board. This is another example of how batteries, green thinking, and sustainability go well together. We have heard Dubai is launching small, pilotless aircraft soon. These hybrid helicopter drones will ferry passengers between airports and hotels. So is seems electric airplanes could soon become common.
How Electric Airplanes Could Knock Electric Cars for Six
Authorities in big cities are clamping down on vehicles using automotive petrol and diesel engines. Their ostensible reason is pollution, but they have a second motive. There are not enough roads to keep them on, and this aspect is becoming more serious.
Hence, Tesla’s electric vehicles seem unlikely to dominate urban traffic in terms of cars. Force of numbers will make personal vehicles give way to public transport.
Small electric airplanes may thus be the only known, long-term alternative for the rich and famous. The lucky few who travel in luxury insulated from the rest of us.
We are aware that Elon Musk is proposing underground road networks beneath American cities. However, we are not convinced that this is practical. The London Underground has been digging 13 miles of Crossrail tunnels since 2009, and hopes to complete them in 2018.
A Short History of Electric Airplanes Bumpy Ride
The first electric airplanes were actually airships with electricity in heavy accumulators. The first electric helicopter flew in 1917, although a cable tethered it to a generator on the ground.
In 1964, a scientist flew an electric model helicopter. This took its energy from microwaves he transmitted from below.
The search has been on since then, with some success from nickel cadmium batteries with high storage-to-weight ratios. In 2013, Chip Yates flew a modified Rutan Long-EZ that outperformed a gasoline-powered Cessna and other aircraft. Finally, Solar impulse astounded everybody by flying around the world on solar-power batteries. It seems the age of electric airplanes has arrived, with batteries playing their part.
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