This is the closing event of the H3PS “High Power High Scalability Aircraft Hybrid Powertrain” project, funded under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, and will also be streamed on YouTube

For organizational reasons, participation at the event is only permitted after completing the registration form at the following link:

https://www.h3ps.eu/event-guest-registration/

After the registration, you will also be receiving the YouTube link.

H3PS – From Tecnam P2010 parallel hybrid-electric propulsion to future aircraft architectures

And now a new player has arrived, determined to transform commercial aviation.

MagniX was founded on Australia’s Gold Coast in 2009 as a research and development lab for electronic propulsion. Around 18 months ago, the team developed a prototype for a motor that was able to produce 350 horsepower in a 110-pound package, prompting a pivot toward aerospace. Last week, the company officially opened its new Redmond headquarters.

“Our goal is to be the leader in aerospace electric propulsion,” CEO Roei Ganzarski said, adding that Australia isn’t exactly an industry hub. “And not only do you have Boeing in Seattle, but you have universities with phenomenal aerospace programs, suppliers to Boeing — even the suppliers’ suppliers.”

The company currently employs 17 people in the new Redmond office and testing facility, in which the company’s 350 horsepower motor was on display when Built In Seattle visited recently. Ganzarski said he plans to grow the company’s local headcount to as many as 30 within the next few months.

Because magniX is building a new kind of motor, it must also build its own software and power electronics, working with a specific set of materials, a proprietary motor design and a proprietary liquid cooling system. In addition to its 350 horsepower motor, the company recently began building a 750 horsepower version and plans to test both in three separate test flights by the end of the year.

“We’re actually going to fly a full-sized aircraft purely on electric power, without a gas-powered backup,” Ganzarski said.

Interestingly, magniX is fully funded by an anonymous owner, which Ganzarski said allows his team to focus on the task of putting electric motors in commercial aircraft — without being distracted by side projects to prove its technology to potential investors.

“You’d be surprised at the types of people that call us,” he said. “They want to put our motors in super cars, super bikes, personal airplanes, you name it.”

Electric propulsion’s electric promise

Ganzarski is bullish about the electric motor’s long-term potential to transform the aerospace industry and our local communities, and his enthusiasm is infectious. According to magniX, the startup’s electric motor has innumerable advantages over the gas-guzzling engines we currently fly on: Aviation currently accounts for three percent of all carbon emissions in the United States; electric motors run much more quietly than their fossil-fueled predecessors. What’s more, magniX claims its electric motors can offer savings of 70 to 80 percent over traditional engines — making flying not just cleaner, but cheaper too.

“A lot of jet engine companies today sell their engines at cost — some might even say below cost — and make it all up in the services and spare parts you need later,” Ganzarski said. “Guess what? We don’t require ongoing services. Our motor has one moving part.”

Ganzarski said batteries are the main limiting factor facing electric motors in aerospace, with major improvements needed in weight and power capacity.

“If you’re thinking this will replace a 737, it absolutely will not,” Ganzarski said. “That’ll take 40 years. But based on current battery technology, this motor is capable of replacing a gas-guzzling engine right now in a small aircraft that’s traveling 50 to 100 miles per trip.”

Connecting communities

While magniX waits for battery technology to improve, it plans to begin installing its electric engines in smaller commercial aircraft — capable of carrying up to ten passengers — which travel 200 miles or less.

The possibility of significantly cheaper, quieter and more environmentally friendly short flights also has the promise to transform certain communities. Ganzarski points to the example of Ellensburg, Washington, a two-hour drive from Seattle over the Cascade mountain range.

“Ellensburg has three airfields, but it’s too small to fill a large Delta or Alaska Airlines plane, making the flight too expensive,” he said. “But when you can provide 70 to 80 percent lower operating costs per flight hour, not just Seattle but any airfield around here — Renton, Snohomish, Bellingham — can connect with Ellensburg.”

In other words: a two-hour drive suddenly becomes a 50-minute flight — less time than many Puget Sound commuters spend in their cars each day — for around the cost of a bus ticket.

“Suddenly, you could live in Ellensburg and work here. We’re all used to seeing Microsoft commuter buses. Why can’t we have Microsoft commuter planes?”

Airbus is the Official Founding Partner of Air Race E. The competition aims to drive the development and adoption of cleaner, faster, and more technologically advanced electric engines that can be applied to urban air mobility vehicles and, eventually, commercial aircraft.

Air Race E will follow a format similar to the popular Air Race 1 series of the sport known as formula one air racing. Eight electric-powered airplanes will race directly against each other on a tight 5-km circuit, just 10 metres above the ground, and at speeds faster than any land-based motorsport.

“We want to motivate manufacturers to showcase their technologies across the full spectrum of electric propulsion systems and components.” said Grazia Vittadini, Chief Technology Officer of Airbus. “This partnership enables us to demonstrate our commitment to staying at the leading edge of electric propulsion and developing a new ecosystem.”

Air Race E CEO Jeff Zaltman said: “We couldn’t be happier or more optimistic for success with Airbus as our Official Founding Partner. This partnership is a significant milestone in the evolution of electric power in aviation. Together, we’re working to create a mainstream platform in which innovation in electric propulsion can be developed, nurtured, and accelerated more rapidly.”

Airbus will work alongside other Air Race E partners, including the University of Nottingham. The University is currently developing a prototype race airplane powered by an integrated electric motor, battery, and power electronics system. The plane will help shape the model and rules for the inaugural Air Race E race in 2020.

To avoid misunderstandings – while Rolls-Royce’s automotive division belongs to BMW, there is still an independent part of the company that specializes in the construction of aircraft and ship propulsion systems. At Gloucestershire Airport in the southwest of England, specialists from the company are now working on an aircraft for the record books with help from the electric motor and control manufacturer YASA and the aviation company Electroflight, among others. It is expected to break the current Siemens speed record of 210 miles per hour (around 338 km/h).

The mission’s success will be facilitated by a lightweight battery pack consisting of 6,000 cells and an advanced cooling system. “We’re monitoring more than 20,000 data points per second, measuring battery voltage, temperature, and overall health of the powertrain, which is responsible for powering the propellers and generating thrust. We’ve already drawn a series of insights from the unique design and integration challenges,” says Matheu Parr, ACCEL Project Manager at Rolls-Royce.