Electric Planes. How far are we really from seeing them?

In the past decade, there has been an enormous push toward sustainability in all modes of transport such as EVs. Fast forward to the present day, car makers like Tesla hold a massive share of an untouchable market just a short time ago. This also comes in light of the historic rise in gas prices across the world. Naturally, it begs the question; can similar advances be made by planes and if so how soon are you and I as customers able to fly on electric planes?

It must first be mentioned that electric planes are already here, in fact, in the summer of 2021 United Airlines ordered 200 ES-19s from Heart Aerospace based out of Sweden. This is major for two reasons, firstly it’s very interesting that these great advancements come from a small aerospace company and not the giants like Airbus or Boeing (more on that later). I also find it interesting that one of the largest airlines in the world would take such a leap of faith in technology that has not been proven in the market or even had its first flight which is set in 2024.

So that is it right? Electric planes are our future and will replace avgas as we know it. Well no, or at least not for a while, and here’s why. Planes require massive power plants to defy gravity and create the necessary lift for flight. Even the smallest regional carriers like ERJ-145 (typically the smallest regional carrier used by most airlines) have engines that create 14,200 pounds of thrust combined. The engines on the ES-19 are about ten times less powerful than this. On top of that the ES-19 cruise speed is around 180 knots which is slower than some trains operate in Europe and Asia. This in itself is the reason that Airbus and Boeing don’t do a lot of innovation in electric planes. They would not be able to sell it to their customers who rely on fast planes that can carry people a long way. These planes aren’t cheap either with a single engine costing 8.8 million US Dollars (there are four on the ES-19). In an aviation market where profit and cost margins are razor-thin, this just doesn’t work.

The bottom line, this is a major advancement and shouldn’t be left unnoticed. The aviation industry is in desperate need of advances in sustainability and this would no doubt be a major help to that. However, we are many decades away from seeing electric planes introduced into medium and long-haul markets where engines must be powerful and efficient. Instead, the waiting game must be played until new electric engine technology is developed.