Alice electric plane- the first all-electric passenger airplane prepares to fly in 2022

Alice electric plane recently successfully tested its high-speed flight and is the first all-electric passenger airplane.

The world’s first all-electric passenger aircraft ‘Alice’ sped down a runway in Washington state on September 18.

Back in 2019, when it was introduced to the public, the developer of Alice electric plane described it as the world’s first all-electric luxury passenger plane.

Now, it has been three years completed, and the waiting for Alice’s flight ended with serious progress of its first flight in the sky.

Initially, the company Eviation planned to start the commercialization of Alice electric aircraft in 2018 but according to plan didn’t go exactly. In 2019 and 2020, a final prototype of this plane was introduced.

But can you guess the problems raised worldwide in 2020? Obviously, it was a COVID-19 pandemic.

Still due to the hard work of all the members of Eviation successfully conducted Alice’s first flight recently.

Since its development, Eviation’s luxury Alice electric aircraft never compromised in its improvements and boasted some impressive specs ever since the beginning of its journey.

However, its capacity to carry passengers remains unchanged, with this being designed as a nine-seater with bags, and upfront in the commuter plane will be space for two crew members.

The components used in Alice’s all-electric plane were imported from 11 countries to build this future commuter electric plane.

Further, Alice is also promised to deliver its luxurious trips with noise and emission-free.

The length of Alice’s electric aircraft is 57 feet long. It’s just a prototype. The production version can fly for about an hour or two, whose a distance of about 170 to 230 miles after

Batteries of Alice Electric Plane

As Alice is an electric plane, its engine is supplied with battery power. The batteries are fitted in the belly of the plane I mean in the bottom of the plane, which is a little wider.

The batteries of this prototype electric plane are heavy and it is a total of 8,000 pounds. They don’t have the same energy density as regular fuel does, which sets a major limit for electric flight.

These contain cylindrical lithium-ion cells, the same shapes as batteries used in Tesla and Rivian. The cargo compartment for luggage is behind the passenger cabin.

You May Also Read: Newly discovered COVID-19 antibody can neutralize it’s all variants

The CEO and President of the Eviation company, Gregory Davis said that “Building an electric aircraft is a war on weight, and it’s a war on drag,” “Our challenges are to get the best possible lift-over-drag ratio.”

Regarding the wings, the Alice electric aircraft has long and narrow wings, they don’t sweep backward. As the wings are lengthy and skinny are referred to as possessing a high aspect ratio.

He also said that “We need to have the most efficient wing that we can,” (For a point of comparison, take a look at the wings on an aircraft like an F-16, which is designed for performance and supersonic speeds, as opposed to efficiency.)

Carbon composite materials are mostly avoided for making the plane for keeping it lightweight.

Further, he added that the Alice electric aircraft is a fly-by-wire (FBW), i.e., it replaced the conventional manual flight controls with an electronic interface, which also makes the plane lighter.

Props in the back of Alice Electric plane

Two electric motors that spin two propellers are fitted at the rear of the aircraft. These electric motors are made by an airline company known as magniX. The Harbour Air also used a magniX motor to power a converted electric seaplane.

In this context, Davis says that “two magniX electric propulsion units can produce 650 kilowatts of power per side, so 1.3 megawatts of power for the aircraft during takeoff, which is great,” and can boast a top speed of 250 knots (287 mph/461 kph).

The Alice electric plane has the potential to carry 2,500 lb (1,130 kg) and claims to offer ranges of up to 440 NM (506 miles/814 km).

Further, Davis compared their current stage of development to NASA’s Mercury program,  which saw the first American on a sub-orbital flight in 1961, eight years before the moon landing of Apollo 11.

“What we’re doing here with Alice is like Alan Shepard going into space on a Redstone [rocket]—it’s showing that we can do it,” he says.

“Where we’re headed in terms of making electric aviation part of our world—something that our children will fly on and we won’t think twice about—that’s the destination here. We need to show that we can do it.”

Eviation plans to have electric Alice fully certified by 2024.

Follow us on Facebook.

You May Also Read:

• Purple Tomatoes! A Journey from Molecular Laboratory to Modular Kitchen
• Wildcat Ridge rock samples of Mars hints presence of ancient life on Mars
• Nanotechnology Products in Daily Life
• Best Five Star Projectors: Bringing the Cosmos into Your Home

FAQ related to Alice electric plane