Electric flight
Electric and hybrid-electric propulsion is rapidly revolutionising mobility technologies across industries, from automotive to marine. And the aviation industry is no exception. At Airbus, our work in electric flight aims to lay the groundwork for future industry-wide adoption and regulatory acceptance of alternative-propulsion commercial aircraft and urban air vehicles.
In 2010, Airbus embarked on its electrification journey, developing the world’s first all-electric, four-engine aerobatic aircraft, CriCri. Since then, we have made significant progress in the electrification of flight. Our all-electric, twin-propeller aircraft E-Fan successfully crossed the English Channel in 2015. Our electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) demonstrator projects, Vahana and CityAirbus, have completed many hours of rigorous and comprehensive flight testing programmes to ensure safety and high performance. E-Fan X, the successor to E-Fan that is 30-times more powerful than its predecessor, has provided invaluable insights on serial hybrid-electric propulsion.