World's First Electric Commercial Plane Takes Flight

Harbour Air just achieved a “world first” – a fully electric commercial plane took its first test flight.

But first, let me tamper your collective excitement – the plane in question was a 62-year-old, six-passenger DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver, modified with a 750-horsepower (560 kW) magni500 propulsion system.

It’s a tiny fraction of a standard jetliner, and it may not scale-up for a while (if ever). The lithium battery used on the test flight could propel a similar plane about 100 miles (160 kilometers). So this “world first” fully electric commercial plane has limited range, though it’ll serve the needs of Harbour Air, which runs up to 300 daily flights, mostly along the coast of British Columbia.

Naturally, both Harbour Air and magniX, an Australian electric motor manufacturer which helped convert the DHC-2, are redefining “hyperbole.”

“In December 1903, the Wright Brothers launched a new era of transportation—the aviation age … today, 116 years later, with the first flight of an all-electric powered commercial aircraft, we launched the electric era of aviation,” said Roei Ganzarski, CEO of magniX.

Harbour Air CEO and founder Greg McDougall, who piloted the DHC-2, claimed they “made history.” “I am incredibly proud of Harbour Air’s leadership role in re-defining safety and innovation in the aviation and seaplane industry,” he said.

Of course, if the new zero-emission plane fulfills Ganzarski’s promise of an engine that "costs 50 percent to 80 percent less per hour" and flies “more places at lower ticket prices and all completely clean," then every superlative will fall short.

Harbour Air wants to convert its entire fleet to offer all-electric passenger flights by 2021.