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Speed records set by electric aircraft

By General Aviation News Staff · January 27, 2022 ·

Steve Jones flying the Spirit of Innovation. (Photo by John M. Dibbs)

Two speed records set by British pilots Phill O’Dell and Steve Jones in the electric powered aircraft “Spirit of Innovation” have been ratified by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), The World Air Sports Federation.

The first record was set by Steve Jones, who reached a speed of 532.1 km/h (about 330.5 mph) over a 15 km (9.3 miles) course at the UK government’s experimental aircraft test site, Boscombe Down, on Nov. 11, 2021.

Following this achievement, Phill O’Dell took to the controls of the “Spirit of Innovation” to reach an impressive 555.9km/h (about 345 mph) over a set course of 3 km (1.86 miles), beating the existing record in the category (set by Germany’s Walter Kampsmann in 2017) by 213.04 km/h (132.4 mph), according to FAI officials.

The aircraft falls into the C-1c category (takeoff weight 1,000-1,750kg) in Group 6: electric.

About Spirit of Innovation

  • Battery cells: 6,480 (sufficient to charge 7,500 phones)
  • Airframe: Nemesis NXT
  • Propellor Rotation: 2,200 rpm
  • Motor Power: 400kw

The aircraft is a collaboration between Rolls-Royce and the UK’s ACCEL program (Accelerating the Electrification of Flight) and is partially funded by the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI), in partnership with the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and Innovate UK.

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Comments

  1. B Branin says

    January 29, 2022 at 6:45 am

    The NXT carbon fiber aircraft was born from a dream of the racers at Reno. Kevin Eldredge built 10 of these airframes in his shop in California. Thanks to the aviation dreamers who are among us. Best wishes for future advancement to all.

  2. Mac says

    January 28, 2022 at 10:27 am

    I think this stuff is cool, just like any other rich man’s toy.
    I had to make an unscheduled 225 mile round trip last night. Temperature -5 to +5 degrees f. I was so glad that I had a gas car, heater running and no worries about if I could do the trip without running out of battery.
    Electric plane for public use is like rowing a boat across the ocean to combat global warming. It just don’t make sense.

  3. scott patterson says

    January 28, 2022 at 6:38 am

    Same old issues, weight, cost, longevity, flexibility.
    Torque and power were never the problem.

  4. JimH in CA says

    January 27, 2022 at 5:22 pm

    A great demonstration of the power of the motors and capability of the controller.
    Too bad it can only fly for 10 minutes….but it can fly really fast.!

    • George says

      January 28, 2022 at 6:39 am

      George says – you have to crawl before you walk and walk before you can run. This is a great first step and they are to be congratulated. Check back in a year to see how long an E powered plane can fly and what distance it covered. Congratulations to these pioneers!

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