JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2018 95
A
ircraft manufacturers and
aviation technology companies
worldwide are gearing up for
the next frontier in aviation: a
regional jet with electrically-powered
propulsion, flying passengers for an
hour or two with reduced emissions,
noise and cost. And that frontier is
within the next 10 years, multiple
manufacturers are now saying, with
new breakthrough partnerships
emerging even as disruptive startups
are working on the problem.
Chris Droney, an engineer in
Boeing’s Research & Technology unit,
suggests to Australian Aviation that
“we might see smaller hybrid-electric
jets for regional travel in the 2020s
and short-range commercial aircraft,
like a regional airliner or small version
of a Boeing 737, operating in the
2030s. It is worth noting that long-
range large commercial aircraft, like
a Boeing 777 or 787, are unlikely to
be displaced by electric aircraft in the
foreseeable future.”
“Electric-powered airplanes exist
for small short-range applications,”
Droney says. “In the future we will
certainly see larger, faster, and longer-
range electric and hybrid-electric
aircraft. Boeing is actively engaged to
push the electric aircraft technologies
toward larger and longer-range
aircraft.”
The successful development of
regional and larger commercial
aircraft, Droney says, will be paced by
the development of improved batteries
and electric components such as
motors, controllers, generators and
distribution systems.
“As with most research and
development, there are challenges
to consider,” Droney explains. “For
electric or hybrid-electric technology,these challenges include energy
storage with the right capacity and
density, power capability of electrical
components, increased voltage of
electric power distribution, power
infrastructure at airports, and
regulatory certification procedures.”
Airbus, too, is studying the
challenges and potential of
electrification.
“In terms of technology challenges,”
Airbus’s general manager of
electrification Glenn Llewellyn
tells Australian Aviation, “there
are electromagnetic compatibility
challenges which we, at that power
level, need to learn about, and need to
integrate into our design principles in
order for that to function correctly. We
have thermal management challenges
at that sort of power level. We have
significant kilowatts of thermal energy
that we need to manage. KnowingE-Fan X
Airbus, Rolls-Royce and
Siemens are modifying a
BAe 146 to act as the E-Fan X
hybrid-electric demonstrator.
AIRBUS