Swedish electric plane maker eyes demonstration flight in Iceland

Heart Aerospace intends to bring one of its electric aircraft to Iceland for a demonstration flight once its development programme has advanced further, Viðskiptablaðið reports.

The Swedish manufacturer completed the first test flight of its X1 demonstrator on August 12, taking off from Plattsburgh, New York. The 27-minute flight reached an altitude of 1,100 feet. The company put the electricity cost of the flight at around five dollars.

Cole Randle, head of corporate affairs at Heart Aerospace, told the paper that Iceland was a natural showcase for the technology.

“It would be hard to imagine a better place to show what electric aviation has to offer than flying between Icelandic communities on renewable energy produced in Iceland,” Randle said. “At the same time, it would give passengers, airlines and authorities the chance to see the technology with their own eyes.” 

The X1 is a purely electric testbed aircraft. The company is separately developing the ES-30, a 30-seat regional aircraft with an electric propulsion system and a hybrid range extender. The ES-30 is designed to fly up to 200 kilometres on battery power alone and up to 800 kilometres using the hybrid system.

Icelandair has signed a letter of intent to buy five ES-30s.

Heart Aerospace is targeting operating costs more than 40 percent below those of conventional regional aircraft, with charging times of around 30 minutes. The company aims to put the ES-30 into commercial service in 2031.

“We believe the ES-30 is exceptionally well suited to Iceland, as the country has short but important flight routes, demanding terrain and good access to clean energy,” Randle said. “We believe Iceland can become one of the world’s leading markets for electric aviation, and one of the first countries where electric aircraft are part of daily scheduled passenger service.”