Heart Aerospace has doubled down on its plans to bring an electric regional airliner to market, unveiling a design for a 30-seat ES-30 model, which will replace the 19-seat ES-19 model the Swedish start-up announced in 2020. During a September 15 event at Heart’s Gothenburg headquarters, Air Canada and Swedish aerospace and defense group Saab each committed to investing $5 million in the venture.
Air Canada also placed a provisional order for 30 of the ES-30s, which Heart says will be powered mainly by four battery-driven electric motors, but now bolstered by a pair of turbo generators to meet reserve energy requirements “without cannibalizing range.” The new model is expected to offer carriers an all-electric range of 200 km (125 miles), with an extended full-payload range of twice that distance and the potential for longer hybrid-powered flights to 800 km (500 miles) with 25 passengers on board, taking account of standard airline fuel reserves.
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