Airbus E-Fan First flight
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Nice! It's not so often we get to see a new and distinctly different prototype take flight (last one I remember was the Cessna... er... Textron Airland Scorpion.)
The design has more of a German look to it (Fantrainer, gliders...) than French, really... Wonder where it was designed, exactly.
The design has more of a German look to it (Fantrainer, gliders...) than French, really... Wonder where it was designed, exactly.
E-Fan is purely "french".
"The E-Fan project originated during the Paris Airshow
2011, as a follow-on to the first cooperation between
EADS Innovation Works and Aerocomposites Saintonge
(ACS) on the Cri-Cri – the world’s first fully electric four
engine aerobatic plane."
If you want to know more :
http://m.airbus-group.com/airbusgroup/int/en/news/media.19bf802f-1fad-4ce7-b61c-b5d6eab6b51d.-E-Fan+Brochure.html
"The E-Fan project originated during the Paris Airshow
2011, as a follow-on to the first cooperation between
EADS Innovation Works and Aerocomposites Saintonge
(ACS) on the Cri-Cri – the world’s first fully electric four
engine aerobatic plane."
If you want to know more :
http://m.airbus-group.com/airbusgroup/int/en/news/media.19bf802f-1fad-4ce7-b61c-b5d6eab6b51d.-E-Fan+Brochure.html
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The Airbus E-Fan (Electric Aircraft) two-seat concept aircraft has been on flying at Farnborough FIA 2014 this week.
It is an all-composite construction, 6.7 m (22 ft) long and a wingspan of 9.5 m (31 ft).
It has two ducted, variable pitch fans spun by two electric motors with a combined power of 60 kW.
The centrally mounted fans provide better control. Powering the fans are a series of 250 Volt lithium-ion polymer batteries made by KOKAM of the Republic of Korea.
The batteries are located in the inboard section of the wings and carry enough charge for up to one hour of flight and can be recharged in one hour.
The undercarriage main and nose-wheel are centrally located and light outriggers are used to save weight.
It is an all-composite construction, 6.7 m (22 ft) long and a wingspan of 9.5 m (31 ft).
It has two ducted, variable pitch fans spun by two electric motors with a combined power of 60 kW.
The centrally mounted fans provide better control. Powering the fans are a series of 250 Volt lithium-ion polymer batteries made by KOKAM of the Republic of Korea.
The batteries are located in the inboard section of the wings and carry enough charge for up to one hour of flight and can be recharged in one hour.
The undercarriage main and nose-wheel are centrally located and light outriggers are used to save weight.
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I recently picked up a rumour that this project originated with Elon Musk but was quietly sold to Airbus as a concept architecture with key technology suppliers identified . I understand Airbus are more than a bit sensitive to this preferring to portray it as an original French invention .
Anyone able to confirm?
Anyone able to confirm?
This is highly interesting -- for one; once the technology improves and becomes productionizable; it has the capability of making light aviation aircraft actually somewhat affordable to the general public -- or... in a round about way; making electric boats much cheaper.
One of the biggest costs of a plane or boat is the fuel -- at the MoCo AirPark last week; the prices were:
Jet A Full Service: $5.99
100LL AVGAS Full Service: $6.60
A simple Cessna 172 needs 56 gallons; so a full fillup is $369.60; giving you a cruise range of 500 nautical miles -- meaning that flying from Montgomery County MD to Ocean City MD and then back again (300 n.mi total due to the need to fly a odd course to avoid the Washington DC ADIZ) sets you back $220~ bucks.
Then there's the cost of maintenance.
Electrics promise to be significantly simpler to maintain than a AVGAS piston engine system.
Boats are almost as bad -- a Bayliner 266 Discovery has a fuel capacity of 81 gallons yet gets about 175~ miles on that -- marine gasoline is about $3.849 while marine diesel is $3.719 -- so a fill up is in the $300~ price range; meaning if you wanted to cruise from Annapolis MD to Ocean City MD and back via the canal that goes through delaware; it'd be a 150~ nautical mile trip; meaning a round trip would cost $600 bucks.
At least with boats; the batteries can also do double duty as ballast in the keel....
One of the biggest costs of a plane or boat is the fuel -- at the MoCo AirPark last week; the prices were:
Jet A Full Service: $5.99
100LL AVGAS Full Service: $6.60
A simple Cessna 172 needs 56 gallons; so a full fillup is $369.60; giving you a cruise range of 500 nautical miles -- meaning that flying from Montgomery County MD to Ocean City MD and then back again (300 n.mi total due to the need to fly a odd course to avoid the Washington DC ADIZ) sets you back $220~ bucks.
Then there's the cost of maintenance.
Electrics promise to be significantly simpler to maintain than a AVGAS piston engine system.
Boats are almost as bad -- a Bayliner 266 Discovery has a fuel capacity of 81 gallons yet gets about 175~ miles on that -- marine gasoline is about $3.849 while marine diesel is $3.719 -- so a fill up is in the $300~ price range; meaning if you wanted to cruise from Annapolis MD to Ocean City MD and back via the canal that goes through delaware; it'd be a 150~ nautical mile trip; meaning a round trip would cost $600 bucks.
At least with boats; the batteries can also do double duty as ballast in the keel....
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/11664405/Electric-airplane-of-the-future-set-for-take-off-at-Paris-Air-Show.html
What's all the Barney? Whilst I understand that some words are spelt differently on opposite sides of the Atlantic I do wonder what all the fuss is about. I say tomato, you say [insert wrong pronunciation here], you say poe-tart-o, I say Spud. We say aeroplane, you say it wrong.
Maybe this isn't an Airbus anyway. More an Airrollerskate.
Maybe this isn't an Airbus anyway. More an Airrollerskate.
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There is no sciences in that. Thrust is a function of the speed at which gases are ejected. Without velocity the thrust would be null, turning the gas generator (the turbine) into an inefficient ICE... (only the fan will produce thrust from the ill-generated electricity) .
Also, the volume of ejected gas during a typical airliner flights would lead to a gigantic "particule filter", heavy, that would have to be replaced certainly as much as a battery... And obviously disposed on an ecological manner. Not really practical in any meanings (the filter does not produce energy and would draw a large amount of power to be disposed).
There are plenty of other manner to dispose off Nox and CoX, one in particular is by not-producing them as much... Something that turbines are really efficiently doing already!
Also, the volume of ejected gas during a typical airliner flights would lead to a gigantic "particule filter", heavy, that would have to be replaced certainly as much as a battery... And obviously disposed on an ecological manner. Not really practical in any meanings (the filter does not produce energy and would draw a large amount of power to be disposed).
There are plenty of other manner to dispose off Nox and CoX, one in particular is by not-producing them as much... Something that turbines are really efficiently doing already!
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