The Skies Are Going Electric: World’s Largest Battery-Powered Aircraft Takes Flight
The future of flying has just taken a significant step forward The X developed by Swedish-founded Heart Aerospace has successfully completed its maiden flight becoming the world s largest fully battery-powered aircraft to fly The -seat demonstrator remained airborne for minutes during an early test at Plattsburgh International Airport in New York Powered entirely by batteries the aircraft climbed to around feet with only a pilot onboard While the X may not carry passengers commercially its mission is important to prove that battery-electric propulsion can work at the scale of an aircraft resembling a small commercial airliner A -Pound Aircraft Running on BatteriesThe numbers behind the X make the achievement even more striking The aircraft weighs more than pounds has a wingspan of feet and stretches feet from nose to tail Its battery-electric propulsion system can produce more than megawatt of power According to Heart Aerospace the -minute demonstration flight