[JasonFruit]

Note that they have agreed to buy them "conditionally… once the aircraft meet United's safety, business and operating requirements." The 2026 number in the title is probably without meaning. Nobody's meeting those requirements just yet.

[sandworm101]

>>Nobody's meeting those requirements just yet.

Someone is. What is very interesting about Harbour Air's approach is that they are not creating new aircraft but rather retrofitting electric propulsion onto their existing fleet. This is not an electric engine filling a niche application. Rather, this is electric replacing combustion engines on very longstanding commercial routes.

https://www.harbourair.com/harbour-air-magnix-and-h55-partne...

"After the successful first flight of the Harbour Air eBeaver powered by magniX in December 2019 and the ongoing flight tests since then, the companies have teamed up with H55 to bring their shared vision of clean, efficient and quiet commercial aviation to life by 2022. H55 will provide its proven modular battery technology to expand the eBeaver’s balance to weight ratio and endurance. The company’s battery modules have one of the highest energy densities on the market and will provide the entire energy storage system and redundant battery monitoring at the cell level for the eBeaver. "

[VBprogrammer]

The eBeaver is about as relevant to conventional air travel as the existence of electric milk floats and forklifts was to ground transport for the past 50 years.

[sandworm101]

I take it that you have never been to Alaska. Or BC. Or Washington. Or anywhere else with more trees than people. Without bushplanes the entire resource extraction industry would grind to a halt. The conversion of a Beaver to electric follows on the past turbo-beaver conversion. It matters and is being watched by the industry.

[minitoar]

Still has a ways to go. The eBeaver range is dramatically less.

[sundvor]

You've got to start somewhere, right? Kudos to the developers of this.

[epx]

In the 1990s, the idea of electric RC planes were ridiculed as well. I am moderately optimistic that 1:1 planes will eventually follow, as RC electric cars became "good enough" and 1:1 electric cars are a reality now.