Although these guy's are hopelessly naive the fire part isn't really a legitimate thing to ding them on. I mean in all fairness, jet fuel/diesel/heating oil are pretty flammable as well and catch fire pretty regularly both in the air and on the ground. It's just not as sensationalistic, at least until it takes down a 747 when the center fuel tank pumps short. If anything a lithium ion powered aircraft would be substantially safer in the otherwise survivable hard/crash landings where it would take a couple minutes for the shorts to end up in an unsurvivable fire while jet fuel mists and explodes from a spark before the plane even comes to rest.It's not like no one has thought about making the lithium ion battery more efficient. This has been an old problem. Also, if your electric car catches on fire, at least you can jump out and run to safety...can't really do that at 30k ft in the air.
Although these guy's are hopelessly naive the fire part isn't really a legitimate thing to ding them on. I mean in all fairness, jet fuel/diesel/heating oil are pretty flammable as well and catch fire pretty regularly both in the air and on the ground. It's just not as sensationalistic, at least until it takes down a 747 when the center fuel tank pumps short. If anything a lithium ion powered aircraft would be substantially safer in the otherwise survivable hard/crash landings where it would take a couple minutes for the shorts to end up in an unsurvivable fire while jet fuel mists and explodes from a spark before the plane even comes to rest.
Google TWA 800!Sure, cars occasionally catch on fire due to a gasoline leak. Diesel is a bit safer, it does not burn as fast. The concern about battery packs is that they can spontaneously explode without requiring any impact. That's why electric cars require complicated cooling systems to keep the pack from overheating. Fuel tanks don't spontaneously explode regardless of the rate at which fuel (energy) is being consumed / withdrawn from them. Also, I'm not sure it would take a couple minutes for the shorts to end up in an survivable fire. Those batteries store a lot of energy and when it's quickly released, it can be awesome.
Google TWA 800!
Absolutely (on the weight part!), the opposite of jet fuel where the plane gets lighter as it flies. One of many things the founders miss can be seen in their statement "when batteries get a lot better" For now "better" mostly means cheaper and to some extent denser. While weight is a concern, it's tertiary and not where we're seeing huge gains. I wouldn't be surprised to see batteries 90% cheaper in 15 years. I would be surprised to see them 98.4% lighter, which is what they'd have to be to match the energy density of Jet-A. And then you've still got to carry the expended weight around the whole flight rather than an average of half, so now they've got to be 99.2% lighter than they are today!That was a missile strike!!!
The problem with batteries is that they become dead weight once they are drained. Airplane manufacturers will battle to save even a few pounds on an airplane as they have to keep that weight afloat in the air the entire duration of a flight.
Absolutely (on the weight part!), the opposite of jet fuel where the plane gets lighter as it flies. One of many things the founders miss can be seen in their statement "when batteries get a lot better" For now "better" mostly means cheaper and to some extent denser. While weight is a concern, it's tertiary and not where we're seeing huge gains. I wouldn't be surprised to see batteries 90% cheaper in 15 years. I would be surprised to see them 98.4% lighter, which is what they'd have to be to match the energy density of Jet-A. And then you've still got to carry the expended weight around the whole flight rather than an average of half, so now they've got to be 99.2% lighter than they are today!
They appear to have some kind of in-wing ducted fan which presumably would run off electric motors. One rule of any bleeding edge technology is to minimize the "first of it's kind" stuff to only that which is absolutely necessary. That would call for an electric motor driven prop plane, like a Dash-8, not some crazy internal fan setup. However a Dash-8 isn't sexy and exciting looking, so they go with an even more unrealistic additional technology.Plus I don't see how it can mimic a jet engine as a jet engine turbine effectively ignites highly compressed air with fuel to create thrust. It would have to be some kind of piston engine which has other limitations.
They appear to have some kind of in-wing ducted fan which presumably would run off electric motors. One rule of any bleeding edge technology is to minimize the "first of it's kind" stuff to only that which is absolutely necessary. That would call for an electric motor driven prop plane, like a Dash-8, not some crazy internal fan setup. However a Dash-8 isn't sexy and exciting looking, so they go with an even more unrealistic additional technology.