The maiden flight of a prototype all-electric aircraft occurred on Tuesday morning in central Washington state made by the Israeli-American startup Eviation. The designed commuter jet, known as the Alice might become the first all-electric commercial aircraft if the Federal Aviation Administration eventually approves the small plane to transport people.
The aircraft, which had a capacity of nine passengers and two pilots, took off on Tuesday at 7:10 a.m. from Moses Lake, Washington. After flying to a height of 3,500 feet (1,066 meters), the electric airplane landed eight minutes later. This was a demonstration by Eviation that such ev airplanes may function as commuter aircraft for regional travel while cruising at a height of roughly 15,000 feet (4,572 meters).
The plane is powered by 21,500 small Tesla-style battery cells weighing over 4 tons. It flies with a pair of MagniX engines, max air speed of about 260 knots, and has a hefty battery system from AVL.
