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:

Electric propulsion, while effective for cars, faces severe practicality challenges for airplanes primarily due to the low energy density and significant weight of batteries compared to aviation fuel.
Current electric aircraft offer extremely limited range and endurance (e.g., about one hour), making them unsuitable for cross-country travel, and recharging times are impractically long for such applications.
Regenerative braking provides minimal benefit for airplanes in flight, meaning electric aircraft are currently only realistically suited for niche uses like short training flights, rather than general aviation travel.

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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.