FutureFlight
Dutch Start-up Maeve Unveils Plans For All-Electric Regional Airliner
The company is starting conceptual design work for an initial 44-passenger aircraft with a projected range of 460 km (250 nmi) that it says could reopen abandoned short-haul air services.
The Maeve 01 all-electric regional airliner
The Maeve 01 all-electric regional airliner is expected to enter service in 2029 carrying 44 passengers up to 250 nmi. (Image: Maeve Aerospace)

Dutch start-up Maeve Aerospace has unveiled plans for an all-electric regional airliner that it says will carry as many as 44 passengers on sectors of up to 460 km (250 nm) by 2029. The company claims its design will be readily scalable in size and that, as battery technology advances, could be enlarged to 52 seats in 2032 and have a range of 710 km by 2040.

During an April 13 ceremony in The Hague, co-founder and chief commercial officer Joost Dieben said that four airlines have so far signed letters of support covering provisional orders for 20 of the Maeve 01 aircraft, which will feature eight wing-mounted propellers. The launch customers include European start-up Fly With Lucy and New Zealand’s Air Napier. Fly With Lucy has set a goal of creating a network of 3,000 small airports across Europe, while Air Napier expects to operate the aircraft on city pairs currently only connected by long drives.