Ampaire is halfway through a month-long flight demonstration program for its Electric EEL aircraft in Hawaii through a partnership with local regional carrier Mokulele Airlines. On November 22, its hybrid-electric version of the Cessna 337 Skymaster twin-engine piston aircraft started operating at least one round-trip each day on the 20-minute flight from Maui’s Kahului Airport to Hana on the other side of the island.
Mokulele is one of more than 15 airlines to have signed a letter of interest with Ampaire with a view to possibly purchasing the Electric EEL. It is the first company to operate a hybrid-electric aircraft under the FAA’s Experimental-Market Survey category, which allows Ampaire to fly with its crew and essential personnel for crew training and an evaluation of the scope of commercial operations. The flight trials are being supported financially by Elemental Excelerator, which is a global climate-technology accelerator organization.
