Rolls-Royce’s Spirit of Innovation has broken three world records for electric planes, paving the way for the development of electric passenger planes. The electric aircraft completed its first roll tests in March 2021 and conducted its first test flights in September over the Boscombe Down test site in southern England. The Spirit of Innovation broke three world records for electric planes, including a speed of 555.9 km/h over a distance of three kilometers, a speed of 532.1 km/h over a distance of 15 kilometers, and an ascent to a height of 3,000 meters in 202 seconds. The aircraft is powered by three electric motors from British-German manufacturer Yasa, which together deliver 400 kW of power, and is equipped with a battery containing 6,000 cells.
The project was funded half by the Aerospace Technology Institute and the British government, with the aim of developing new technologies for fully electric passenger planes. The European Union’s Flightpath 2050 program requires the aviation industry to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 60%, nitrogen oxide pollution by 90%, and noise pollution by 75% in the coming years. Rolls-Royce and European aviation giant Airbus are both working on electric planes, with Airbus aiming to develop market-ready hydrogen-powered planes by 2035.
The development of electric planes is a significant step towards reducing the aviation industry’s carbon footprint and meeting global climate targets. The Spirit of Innovation’s world records demonstrate the potential of electric planes to match or even surpass the performance of traditional planes. With continued investment and innovation, electric planes could become a viable and sustainable alternative to fossil fuel-powered planes in the near future.
