World’s first commercial electric plane takes flight in Canada

Vancouver – The world’s first fully electric commercial aircraft took its inaugural test flight on Tuesday, taking off from the Canadian city of Vancouver where tall mountain peaks edge the Pacific Ocean.

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“This proves that commercial aviation in all-electric form can work,” said Roei Ganzarski, chief executive of Seattle-based engineering firm magniX.

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The company designed the plane’s motor and worked in partnership with Harbour Air, which ferries half a million passengers a year between Vancouver, Whistler ski resort and nearby islands and coastal communities.

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Ganzarski said the technology would mean significant cost savings for airlines – not to mention zero emissions.

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“This signifies the start of the electric aviation age,” he told reporters.

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Civil aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of carbon emissions as people increasingly take to the skies and new technologies have been slow to get off the ground.

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The International Civil Aviation Organization has encouraged greater use of efficient biofuel engines and lighter aircraft materials, as well as route optimization.

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The e-plane – a 62-year-old, six-passenger DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver seaplane retrofitted with an electric motor – was piloted by Greg McDougall, founder and chief executive of Harbour Air.

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“For me that flight was just like flying a Beaver, but it was a Beaver on electric steroids. I actually had to back off on the power,” he said.

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McDougall took the plane on a short loop along the Fraser River near Vancouver International Airport in front of around 100 onlookers soon after sunrise.

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Environmentally-friendly flying

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The flight lasted less than 15 minutes, according to an AFP journalist on the scene.

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“Our goal is to actually electrify the entire fleet. There’s no reason not to,” said McDougall.

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On top of fuel efficiency, the company would save millions in maintenance costs, as electric motors require “drastically” less upkeep, McDougall said.

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However, Harbour Air will have to wait at least two years before it can begin electrifying its fleet of more than 40 seaplanes.

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The e-plane has to be tested further to confirm it is reliable and safe. In addition, the electric motor must be approved and certified by regulators.

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In Ottawa, Transport Minister Marc Garneau told reporters ahead of the maiden flight that he had his “fingers crossed that the electric plane will work well.”

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If it does, he said, “it could set a trend for more environmentally friendly flying.”

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