The world’s first fully electric, commercial aircraft ‘DHC-2 de Havilland Beave’ took its inaugural test flight on December 10, 2019, taking off from the Canadian city of Vancouver and offering hope that airlines may one day end their polluting emissions.
The aircraft — an aging six-passenger DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver seaplane — has been retrofitted with a 750-horsepower electric motor built by U.S. firm magniX.
According to the company, the technology would mean significant cost savings for airlines – not to mention zero emissions.
Civil aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of carbon emissions as people increasingly take to the skies and new technologies have been slow to get off the ground.
The engine, the magni500, was unveiled at the Paris Air Show in June this year.
At 285 grammes of CO2 emitted per kilometre travelled by each passenger, airline industry emissions far exceed those from all other modes of transport, according to the European Environment Agency.
