Adam Twidell with electric plane
What is the first question that everyone asks about electric aircraft?
“How far can you fly before you have to recharge?”
The answer can get complicated when you get into comparing eVTOLs (capable of a vertical take off) against eCTOLs (using a conventional runway), or comparing fixed rotors to tilting ones; but the biggest factor is of course the levels of energy you can store in the aircraft’s battery…without it being too heavy to take off!
Last week a potential game changing battery has been announced by the world’s leading EV battery manufacture, CATL. Should this battery be manufactured successfully, and is fit for the aviation industry, this will give investors’ confidence to continue to pour money into the Advanced Air Mobility sector.
Aviation Battery Pack on display at Aero Friedrichshafen 2023. Source: Adam Twidell
Why is CATL’s battery going to be a game changer?
The amount of energy that can be stored in a battery for a given mass is measured in watt hours per kilogram (Wh/Kg), this is called the battery’s energy density. The electric aircraft manufactured today are using batteries where that figure is in the region of 200-250 Wh/Kg.
The announcement by CATL claims their new battery will be capable of 500 Wh/Kg….over double the energy of current batteries.
This would more than double the range of electric aircraft, potentially increasing the distance we can fly by 3X.
This is due to the large amount of fixed energy required for every flight, this is made up of; energy that is used during take-off for a period of maximum power, the legally required reserve energy that all commercial flights have to have for any unplanned holding and diversion before the final landing, and also an amount (often unusable) energy that the battery manufacturers restrict access to in order to prevent long-term battery damage.
Who Are CATL?
- Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited
- The world’s largest Chinese car battery manufacturer
- 34% of EV battery market share across the major car manufacturers including Tesla, Volvo, Volkswagen, Toyota, BMW, Daimler AG, Honda & Hyundai
Source: CATL
However, there are many other factors that need to be considered for an electric aircraft battery than just the energy density, these include:
- Power Density – this is the amount of power that can be delivered in a given mass. Think of this as a sprinter’s larger muscles compared to a long distance runner’s endurance build. An eVTOL taking off vertically requires a battery to give this high output of power for a short period of time.
- Speed of charging.
- Number of charging cycles possible before the battery is declared at its end of life (80% of day 1 performance is generally being used as this metric)
- Safety – a thermal run-a-way is not something anyone wants to happen in the air or even on the ground!
How far can electric aircraft fly today?
Electric flying records are set to be broken frequently in the year ahead, but as of today (April 2023) the record-holder for an eVTOL (with a vertical take-off and landing) is AutoFlight at 250km (155 miles).
Electric Aircraft Record Holder AutoFlight
With this ground-breaking battery technology announcement by CATL, the goal of sustainable short haul flying it seems suddenly much more achievable and near-term. At the very least it will hopefully keep investment coming into the sector, because although electric aircraft development doesn’t burn fuel, it certainly burns investors cash!
Adam Twidell is a Pilot, Entrepreneur, Board Director and CEO and served 10 years as a RAF pilot.
Keyword: To fly, or not to fly? Battery breakthrough may boost electric flight distance three fold