Futuristic electric vertical-takeoff air taxis have grabbed all the headlines—and billions in venture dollars—but Singapore-based investorthinks he has a better idea: conventional battery-powered aircraft that are cheaper to fly and more reliable than turboprops.
In 2019, he bought a 70% stake in Eviation, an Israeli startup, to show how well MagniX’s engines could perform in an airplane designed from day one around electric propulsion. Chandler sees the nine-passenger Alice as the Tesla Model S of electric aircraft. Like Elon Musk’s first $95,000 battery-powered sedan, Alice will be expensive and range-challenged . But Chandler believes Alice will catalyze the development of electric aircraft in an industry still skeptical of them.
Worldwide, McKinsey estimates roughly 12,000 older small aircraft are suitable for conversion to battery electric or hybrid systems . In addition, the company is working with Southern California startup Universal Hydrogen to power 40-seat seat regional airplanes with fuel cells. One firm order: launch customer DHL, which is ponying up for 12 cargo-configured planes. Light e-commerce boxes are a good fit for Alice. The plane has an unusually wide 6-foot-4-inch midsection to incorporate 8,200 pounds of batteries, which leaves it with less overall payload capacity than planes of similar size, but lots of interior volume.
Impressive