Rolls-Royce Tests Sci-Fi-Looking All-Electric Aircraft

Future fully-electric air transport looks promising.
Spirit of Innovation

Rolls-Royce's all-electric plane Spirit of Innovation was launched this week. It looks great!

The single-seat, sleek prop plane was designed to look like racing planes and took off from the UK Ministry of Defenses Boscombe Down on Wednesday.

It flew for 15 minutes, marking a milestone in greener, more-electric air transport and a step towards Spirit of Innovations' upcoming speed record attempt at flying at over 300 mph.

Jet Zero

Rolls-Royce claimed that the propeller of the plane was powered by an electric powertrain of 400 kilowatts, which is equivalent to over 500 horsepower. The battery pack, which Rolls-Royce claims is the most powerful ever designed for aircraft, also provided the power.

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The project received solid support and was partially sponsored by the British government.

Warren East, Rolls-Royce CEO, stated that we are focused on delivering the technological breakthroughs society requires to decarbonize transport across land, air and sea and to seize the economic opportunity of the transition towards net zero.

He said that this is more than just about setting a world record. The advanced battery and propulsion technology created for this program have exciting applications in the Urban Air Mobility market, and could help make jet zero a reality.

Rolls Royce is aiming to reach net zero operations by 2030. It may be possible with the right technology.

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READ MORE: Rolls-Royce's all-electric Spirit of Innovation flew for the first time [New Atlas]



Learn more about all-electric planes: See the World's Largest Electric Plane Take the Skyes

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