Two companies announce plans to become the Tesla of the air

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By Matthew Griffin Future Transport 5th April 2017

WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF

Airlines have been dreaming about electric passenger aircraft for decades, and now the technology is improving we might see the first electric passenger aircraft appear by 2030.

Hot on the heels of Rolls Royce’s CEO announcing that he thinks the future of flight is electric, and Dubai rolling out their own electric, autonomous Sky Taxi service in July this year, EasyJet, a low cost budget airline operating out of the UK, has partnered with Wright Electric, a European upstart with the dream of building the first electric passenger aircraft. Between them the pair hope that within a decade they’ll be able to launch a greener electric jet to take passengers between London and Paris by 2027.

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As well as being one of the world’s biggest culprits, when it comes to pollution, aviation fuel is also horribly expensive, and even though airline companies hedge their bets and bulk buy fuel when it’s “cheap” the fact remains that a big move in oil prices can wipe out an airlines profit in the blink of an eye.

As far as EasyJet is concerned this is just prudent planning – not only does it give them a chance to dramatically reduce the cost of flying, and give pollution a kick in the gut along with it, but over the long term they’ll be able to offer passengers cheaper airfares which will make them more competitive in the market.

But the project is not without its risks, Wright co-founder Jeff Engler has admitted, if battery technology doesn’t advance quickly enough the plane may have to have a hybrid engine, rather than full electric. Even so though, the aircraft should still be more efficient and environmentally friendly that what’s currently in the air.

“Easyjet has had discussions with Wright Electric and is actively providing an airline operator’s perspective on the development of this exciting technology,” said EasyJet in a statement.

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However, given the fact that electric cars have taken decades to develop are only just becoming a “luxury” reality, don’t expect electric planes to be taking off anytime soon, as Engler says:

“Tesla was founded back in 2003 and only really became a household name in 2012 with the Model S. It’s going to take an airplane company just as long, if not longer. We have to get started!”

But at least, between Rolls Royce, EasyJet and Wright Electric, they’ve started…

Matthew Griffin / About Author

Described by NASA as a "Walking Encyclopaedia of the Future" and one of the world’s most in demand keynote speakers Matthew Griffin, Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm, is a multi-award winning Futurist and strategic foresight expert, author, lecturer, mentor, podcast and YouTube host.

With a distinguished career running global business units at Atos, EMC, and IBM today Matthew helps leaders and titans of industry from all over the world explore the impact of the inter sections of technology, culture, and leadership, then helps them create high performance organisations that can continuously disrupt, outpace, and outthink their competition.

15 times author of the hit series the Codex of the Future series Matthew's ability to identify, track, and explain the impacts of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends on global business, culture, and society has earned him a powerful reputation and a roster of clients that include royal households, world leaders across the G7, G20, and G77, and many of the world's most recognised and exceptional organisations including ABB, Accenture, ABN Amro, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi Group, Coca Cola, Deloitte, Dentons, Disney, Dow, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Microsoft, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Nokia, Paramount, PepsiCo, PWC, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, T-Mobile, UBS, Visa, WIRED, WPP and hundreds of others.

Matthew is regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, and his mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.