Electric planes? We really are on the cusp of a flying revolution

ELECTRIC aeroplanes? Impossible you might think. There’s no way an electric battery could possibly power an aeroplane.

But they are already here. A twoseater aircraft is running a local service in London’s eastern fringe.

Yes, an electric-powered aeroplane has taken to the skies! We are on the cusp of a revolution in flight.

The plane needs less maintenance because it is a smoother flight.

There’s no aviation fuel, no getting an engine going, no vibrations.

It has fewer moving parts so needs less work. And more of the battery energy gets converted to movement and is not lost in heat.

The current downside is the battery weight and thus the range – it’s limited to about an hour. This costs just £1 in electricity! When the battery problem is cracked – and someone, somewhere surely will (let’s hope it’s here in Bristol) – then the planes will be able to be bigger, carry more people and luggage, and provide a viable commercial service.

We are already seeing drone taxis getting ready for service. We could see small aeroplanes offering quick transport city-to-city in the next decade.

It just goes to show that the fossil fuel engine is on the way out. It might disappear sooner than we think.

Just as we found it impossible to think we could have a pandemic, lockdown, big changes etc beforehand, now we may think it impossible to have a future without burning fossil fuels, but this could come very quickly for both ground and air travel.

Filton and Airbus are hopefully monitoring very closely because there will be good jobs in green aviation. Shipshape and Filton fashion? Why not? Electric flight is here to stay.

Alex Gordon Bristol