Team Aims To Fly 300 MPH On Batteries

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Electroflight, a team of British glider builders, recently announced it has teamed up with Williams Advanced Engineering to build a single-seat airplane that will set a new speed record for electric aircraft of 300 mph. Team Electroflight has built a mock-up of its design, and said it will be powered by a “unique contra-rotating electric propulsion system.” Williams is affiliated with the Williams Martini Formula One car-racing team, which is developing technology to compete in a new fully electric car-racing series, called Formula E, that is set to debut this month. “We are certain that the combined expertise of the teams will enable us to achieve our goal and break the world speed record for electric aircraft,” said Roger Targett, of Electroflight. The current speed record for electric flight is 220 mph.

Electroflight exhibited its mock-up of the new design at the recent Red Bull Air Races in Ascot, England. “There was a huge amount of interest and large numbers of people, mainly children, queuing to sit in the cockpit of our space allocation fuselage,” said Targett. According to the Electroflight website: “Our aircraft design combines advances in carbon composite materials and construction methods with emerging electric motor, control system and energy-storage technologies. Its twin propeller contra-rotating propulsion offers unique maneuvering capabilities. … Two fixed-pitch propellers have been designed and engineered specifically to the rotational and torque characteristics of the motors, together with thrust and acceleration bearing assemblies that far exceed the loads presented during aggressive 10 G aerobatics and air racing.

“The carbon composite airframe is fitted with a whole aircraft ballistic parachute system and incorporates a separate pilot safety cell, similar to that in F1 racing cars. The airframe has extremely low form drag and incorporates purpose designed compartments to carry batteries, controllers and electronic equipment. The result is a completely new type of race plane and technology demonstrator that is light, fast and capable of maneuvers impossible for single-propeller piston or gas-turbine-driven aircraft.”

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