“Oh for the wings of a dove,” a choirboy sang for Felix Mendelssohn on 8 January 1845 in London, England. “Far away, far away would I rove; in the wilderness build me a nest, and then remain there forever at rest.” How often have we dreamed of soaring into the sky on wings of an electric dove on battery power? Are we living in fantasy land?
Could Our Electric Dove Be the Third Aerospace Revolution?
Prof Iain Gray, director of aerospace at UK Cranfield University believes something like that is around the corner. He has an impressive string of achievements and rewards, and he is reliable enough although he does not mention our electric dove specifically.
He told the BBC on February 8th, 2018, “We’re seeing new materials. We’re seeing new technologies around autonomy and artificial intelligence for the first time applied in aerospace. And we’re seeing really exciting opportunities around electric propulsion. I believe we’re at the cusp of a third revolution in aerospace.”
Imagine Booking an Electric Airbus on a Smartphone
Airbus Helicopters, a division of you know who has successfully tested a scaled down four-passenger aircraft drone. Later, the full-size version will do vertical landings and takeoffs in tight spaces in city landscapes. We could be roving skies in our virtual electric dove within five years.
We rest our eyes on their vision, although they are not the only company developing electric passenger aircraft. Just imagine no more smelly aircraft octane, no more roaring engines in the cabin. Just the almost silent purr of giant rotors running on, you guessed it pure battery power. Oh, for the wings of an electric dove like that!
The full-size mini-electric airbus will transport four passengers on fixed routes cruising at 70 miles per hour. It will carry an optional pilot, until we trust it to be autonomous, and even safer and efficient.
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Preview Image: Electric Dove
