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Aircraft


HYBRID ELECTRIC EEL AIRCRAFT CLAIMS FLIGHT ENDURANCE RECORD

By Loz Blain
December 12, 2023
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Hybrid Electric Eel aircraft claims flight endurance record


The Electric Eel hybrid has just logged a record 12-hour flight
Ampaire
View 3 Images
1/3
The Electric Eel hybrid has just logged a record 12-hour flight
Ampaire
2/3
The current Electric Eel (get it? current? Waaaa I kill me) uses separate
combustion and electric powertrains in parallel
Ampaire
3/3
The next-gen Eel will run a parallel-series hybrid system that'll allow the
gasoline engine to charge up the battery during flight
Ampaire

View gallery - 3 images

Hybrids could have almost as much potential in the air as they do on the ground.
Ampaire says the clever first-gen hybrid powertrain in its Electric Eel
demonstrator cuts fuel consumption by 50-70%, and it's just logged a world
record for endurance.



It's not as intuitive as it is with cars, where a hybrid's ability to harvest
the braking energy in stop/start traffic makes a vast difference to the overall
fuel consumption. Aircraft, of course, tend to run their engines more or less at
a constant speed in cruise flight.

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But Ampaire says that once you incorporate a hybrid powertrain, you can run a
much smaller, more efficient and less powerful combustion engine, and simply
switch the electric assist on when you need a thrust boost for takeoff, landing
or fast acceleration. You can also run an aerial version of regenerative
braking, provided your electric and ICE powertrains have separate propellers, to
recover some energy as you slow down.

The current Electric Eel (get it? current? Waaaa I kill me) uses separate
combustion and electric powertrains in parallel
Ampaire

That's the case with the Electric Eel demonstrator plane, which runs a pusher
prop as well as a traditional nose prop thanks to its Cessna 337 Skymaster
twin-tail donor plane. The two powertrains are completely separate, operating in
parallel.



In the next-gen Electric Eel, Ampaire says it plans to run a parallel-series
layout, in which a combined hybrid engine system will power the rear prop, and
also send power to the nose prop's electric motor. This will allow the
aforementioned regenerative air braking, but it'll also allow the gasoline
engine to charge the battery during flight. The current-gen Eel needs to be
charged in the hangar between flights, but the next-gen plane will have much
more flexibility to operate on fuel alone where no charging is available.

Still, the current plane is notching up some impressive achievements in its
demonstration phase, burning vastly less fuel than the standard Cessna and
reducing maintenance by an estimated 25-50% as well. And now it's set what the
company believes is an endurance record for a hybrid aircraft, with a flight
lasting "12 hours exactly," with more than two hours of reserve fuel and battery
untouched.


The next-gen Eel will run a parallel-series hybrid system that'll allow the
gasoline engine to charge up the battery during flight
Ampaire

The Eel flew 1,375 miles (2,213 km) during the flight – which was a simple
circling exercise over Camarillo airport in California and probably not the most
exciting undertaking in the world. But both the range and endurance handily beat
the five hours and 745 miles (1,200 km) on the standard push/pull Cessna
Skymaster's spec sheet.

Range and endurance remain massive challenges for fully electric aircraft – so
perhaps, as the world moves to decarbonize every nook and cranny of industry,
there's a place for hybrid propulsion to come in and act as a transitional step,
vastly reducing fuel burn and emissions.

Enjoy watching the Eel fly over the gorgeous coast of Hawaii in the video below,
from a few years back.

Ampaire's Electric EEL Takes Flight in Hawai‘i

Source: Ampaire


View gallery - 3 images


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TAGS

AircraftHybridElectric AircraftWorld RecordsWorld's Longest
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9 comments
Loz Blain
Loz has been one of our most versatile contributors since 2007, and has since
proven himself as a photographer, videographer, presenter, producer and podcast
engineer, as well as a senior features writer. Joining the team as a motorcycle
specialist, he's covered just about everything for New Atlas, concentrating
lately on eVTOLs, hydrogen, energy, aviation, audiovisual, weird stuff and
things that go fast.


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9 comments
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published.
Towerman December 13, 2023 03:42 AM
OUTSTANDING !!!!!
pbethel December 13, 2023 07:29 AM
Went to their website and the studiously ignore comparing these aircraft to
combustion engine aircraft.
They only give comparisons to other experimental power sources.
I would like to know what the USEFUL payload is compared to piston/turbine
versions.
Wayne Pein December 13, 2023 09:50 AM
Nice, but it seems a big mistake to use a conventional propeller when a toroidal
design is so superior.
guzmanchinky December 13, 2023 12:06 PM
Wayne, I was wondering the same, what would numbers be if they did that? And
yes, as a pilot I wonder how much load the batteries take away...
Kpar December 13, 2023 01:17 PM
I do believe that hybrids are the answer (NOT EVs!). I recently bought a Ford
Police Interceptor Hybrid Explorer. Fast, comfortable, and 25 MPG city and
almost 30 MPG highway!

I do not think the battery tech is there for aviation quite yet, but I think
it's coming.
Chase December 13, 2023 11:03 PM
While they are at it, they should probably get the ICE engine certified for
non-leaded fuel. It still baffles me that most piston powered aircraft still use
leaded fuel to this day.
paleochocolate December 14, 2023 12:24 AM
@Wayne Pein - the toroidal propellers are a relatively new innovation that is
just a couple months old + you still need to tune it specifically to your
application it's not even guaranteed to actually be better in that application
than traditional props.
In this case, I think using conventional propellers are just fine at this point
in time.
guzmanchinky December 15, 2023 12:16 PM
Paleo, I agree, but since it's an experimental I think they should try it, I'd
love to see those numbers.
mediabeing December 18, 2023 05:35 AM
I'm warming up on hybrids.
Earlier, the supposed complexity of a hybrid system made me generally against
it.
Now, I'd be happy with a hybrid car or plane. Bring it on, preferably with
bio-fuel.
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