Harbour Air makes history with first electric powered flight

Thursday, 12 Dec, 2019 0

The first commercial ‘e-plane’ has successfully completed its first flight.

Vancouver based Harbour Air’s retrofitted DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver floatplane was in the air for just a few minutes but landed safely.

At the controls was Harbour Air’s founder and CEO Greg McDougall.

It marks the first step in a two-year process to get certified as an all-electric commercial air operator.

It plans to have the world’s first an all-electric fleet of commercial aircraft.

Its 34 planes will all eventually get electric magni500 engines, which are made by Washington company magniX.

"This historic flight signifies the start of the third era in aviation – the electric age," the airline said in a statement.

magniX and Harbour Air will start the certification process as they progressively retrofit more aircraft.

While battery life and time in the air is limited, it doesn’t present problems for Harbour Air’s short commuter flights.

It operates about 30,000 flights a year, carrying half a million passengers on short flights within the Pacific Northwest.

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