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Why electric airplanes within 10 years are more than a fantasy
One of Europe's largest airlines, EasyJet, announced on Wednesday that it is aiming to begin service with electric-powered airplanes within the next decade. EasyJet will be collaborating with an aviation startup called Wright Electric to make this vision a reality. The companies have ambitious goals: they want to build airplanes with room for 120 and 220 passengers and a range of 335 miles. That's so ambitious, in fact, that I was a little skeptical that anyone should take it… (arstechnica.com) More...
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Dreamers ... At the end of the day, lift must significantly overcome weight and thrust must significantly overcome drag. Wishing it were otherwise will not alter those physical realities.
And very soon the flying car will be in everyones driveway..................ok........when that happens then I might think that they could get enough batteries and motors on something that could actually fly passengers any distance.
Pipe dream.
Similar arguments were put forth about manned and heavier-than-air flight. The pioneers in the field did not give up, and incremental improvements and the occasional breakthrough got us to where we are today.
To presume that we've reached the end of innovation and progress in aeronautics is foolish -- if anything, advances in technology is increasing the pace. Computers allow for structural and fluid dynamics modeling that wasn't possible a decade ago, lightweight composites and additive manufacturing are becoming commonplace, and battery technology is improving steadily and a hotbed for research.
Take a mental retrospective of what was state of the art in aeronautics every decade over the last 100 years, and marvel at the progress. Then project similar advances into the future, and you'll hardly recognize the things that the next generation of humanity will take for granted.
To presume that we've reached the end of innovation and progress in aeronautics is foolish -- if anything, advances in technology is increasing the pace. Computers allow for structural and fluid dynamics modeling that wasn't possible a decade ago, lightweight composites and additive manufacturing are becoming commonplace, and battery technology is improving steadily and a hotbed for research.
Take a mental retrospective of what was state of the art in aeronautics every decade over the last 100 years, and marvel at the progress. Then project similar advances into the future, and you'll hardly recognize the things that the next generation of humanity will take for granted.
