Electric Beaver Flies
Harbour Air flew a De Havilland Beaver on floats on pure electric power for the first time in early December as the first step in its program to fully electrify its fleet of historic seaplanes. The Vancouver-based airline serves dozens of communities off British Columbia’s west coast and most of its flights are 30 minutes or less so the company believes new advances in battery technology will enable it to safely carry out the dozens of commercial passenger flights it operates every day. The December flight was a demonstration of the motor in a plane near its gross weight with batteries and lasted about 15 minutes. CEO Greg McDougall lifted the almost-70-year-old airframe off the Fraser River and later reported that it flew like a Beaver. He said newer, lighter batteries that are becoming available will allow room for passengers and cargo and the savings on maintenance and downtime will ultimately pay off.
Mooney Reopens
Mooney reopened its Kerrville, Texas factory on Dec. 2, almost three weeks after a surprise shutdown briefly suspended production. The company has been tight lipped about what led to the closure although a spokesman did tell local media that Mooney is in talks with a new investor. The company did not return media enquiries during the shutdown although there have been reports a small group of employees was at work filling parts orders. There are about 11,000 Mooneys flying.
