Electric Airplanes

I first bought a hybrid electric car in 2006 that Ive just replaced with a plug-in hybrid electric car. The technology is amazing and gas usage is dramatically shifted to cheaper electricity. Every time I slow down, Im putting energy back into the battery to reuse. Thus, even when the car says I can drive 15 miles on the battery, if Im in stop-and-go traffic, I can usually count on a lot more.

Frank Bowlin

Wednesday, August 15, 2018 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Despite the enthusiasm for electric propulsion and its success in hybrid cars, the article argues that electric airplanes face severe practical limitations.
Key challenges include the significant weight penalty of batteries due to their low energy density compared to fuel, impractically long recharging times, and currently very limited range or endurance, making cross-country travel unfeasible.
Hybrid airplane designs and regenerative charging offer minimal practical benefits for travel, with the only viable niche identified being highly specialized training aircraft operating in repetitive patterns.

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The whole world seems giddy about electric propulsion, and that’s good. But good things must be moderated against practicality.

I first bought a hybrid electric car in 2006 that I’ve just replaced with a plug-in hybrid electric car. The technology is amazing and gas usage is dramatically shifted to cheaper electricity. Every time I slow down, I’m putting energy back into the battery to reuse. Thus, even when the car says I can drive 15 miles on the battery, if I’m in stop-and-go traffic, I can usually count on a lot more.