YASA’s Second Output Record This Year

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Mercedes-Benz, with its YASA (Yokeless and Segmented Armature) motor, has achieved a second world record this year for power density.  Pulling 1,000 horsepower from a 12 kilogram (xx pound) motor seems a bit incredible, but Mercedes has dynomometer tests to prove it. This efffort will be in production cars within a year, according to Mercedes, and the aircraft version, produced by a division called Evolito, will probably follow shortly thereafter. Even while under development at Oxford University, the motor showed great promise, as well as great torque.   This blog included the video below in 2010, with a Lotus 7 copy being flung about handily with two 40 kilowatt (53.6 horsepower) YASAs driving the rear wheels.  At that time, power was limited to 75 kilowatts (100.5 hp.), although designers believed 150 kW (201 hp.) was possible.   That early motor weighed 11 kilograms, or 23.2 pounds, one pound per three limited horsepower, one pound per six horsepower at the design limit.  As …

Piper Germany and the MDA1 Electric Commuter

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Flieger magazine reports, “Piper Deutschland AG has announced a strategic investment in MD Aircraft GmbH . The goal of the collaboration is to advance the development and production of the all-electric regional aircraft MDA1 eViator.” (Note: based on later reporting, the power bays may be incorporated into the lower part of the fuselage.  The blog will attempt to gain verification of this.) Signed on September 19, 2025, the agreement “is intended to mark the start of a new chapter in aviation for Piper – with a focus on innovation and environmental sustainabilit,” according to Flieger. Providing MD the financial stability of Piper’s funding and for Piper the planned design for a twin-motored commuter liner in the size and performance range familiar to established Piper customers, the compact should be beneficial to both companies. The MDA1 Aircraft An “all-electric short-haul aircraft with a range of up to 400 kilometers (248 miles),” The MDA1 should suit the needs of most regional commuter lines internationally. We wrote …

1Comet Debuts at Electrifly-in 2025

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1Comet, a high-performance, laminar-flow ultralight sailplane, debuted at Electrifly-in 2025 in Bern, Switzerland.  Though looking somewhat like the Ruppert Archeopteryz, there are significant differences. Both 1Comet and Archaeopteryx come in foot-launch and electric-powered versions.  Both fall into the microlight category and are capable of flying in microlift conditions. 1Comet, though, has a broader weight range, from a foot-launched glider with fixed landing gear weighing a total of 165 kilograms (364 pounds) to an electric-powered, retractable gear machine toppin out at 350 kilograms (771 pounds). Archaeopteryx has a removable electric motor behind the pilot, cleverly strapped in with Velcro fasteners.  1Comet has a fixed-position Front Electric Sustainer motor in the nose. The 1Comet web site makes the following claims for the electric-powered version.  “The low weight also makes it the ideal platform for electric flight. With only 30 kg of batteries, you can stay in the air for over 2 hours or climb more than 4000 meters. “The electric glider version …

An Aerial Pulitzer Prize

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Win a Pulitzer Without Writing a Word There hasn’t been a Pulitzer Air Race or Prize (Trophy) for 100 years, the last competition taking place in 1925.  The revived Pulitzer Trophy Races will differ considerably from the original events.  Those races were all flown with military aircraft flown by experienced military pilots.  Differing greatly in engines, the earlier contestants all burned fossil fuels: the current competitors will fly on electricity. The Original Pulitzer Air Races The Pulitzer Trophy Races ran only five years, and were also knonw as the National Air Races.  Winners during those five years included: 1920: Corliss Champion Moseley, flying a Verville-Packard 600, 156.54 mph, Nov. 25, Mitchel Field, N.Y. 1921: Bert Acosta, flying a Curtiss, 176.76 mph, Nov. 3, Omaha, Neb. 1922: Russell L. Maughan, flying a Curtiss, 205.80 mph, Oct. 14, Detroit, Mich. 1923: Alford J. Williams, flying a Curtiss R2C1, 243.68 mph, Oct. 6, St. Louis, Mo. 1924: H.H. Mills, flying a Verville-Sperry, 216.55 mph, Oct. 4, Dayton, Ohio …

Jean-Baptiste’s Disruptive Electrifly-in Win

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Jean-Baptiste Loiselet is a disruptive force seemingly immune to conventional thinking.  Funding what he calls a “hybrid” aircraft from his life savings, he has flown his solar sailplane around France, set a world altitude record for electric microlight aircraft, demonstrated its airworthiness at the 2024 Paris Air Show, and recently won his third Electrifly-in award at Bern, Switzerland. The term “disruptive” is one of esteem in high-tech America, but translated into French, the hashtag “rupture” leads to Jean-Baptiste’s LinkedIn site or even to his Des Ailes pour la Planète (Wings for the Planet) website.  The following, a translation of the original French, shows how words can be misapprehended. “⚡️ Rupture or not rupture?  (disruption or not disruption?  Your editor’s interpretation.) “🏆 For the third year in a row, I’m at the top of the podium in Electrifly-In Switzerland for the sole reason that I’m the only one in my category: hybrid. “🌱 Hybrid because the Sol.Ex. is a bit of …

H55 Does a Grand Tour of America

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H55, the Swiss electric light aircraft spin-off of the Solar Impulse Foundation under Andre’ Borschberg’s leadership, has toured America from sunny Florida to sunny California and back to New York’s Hamptons. H55’s Tour of America While Beta’s Alia is making the Grand Tour of Europe, the H55-powered Bristel B25 Energic has made its own Grand Tour of the New World. Completing a “landmark tour” of America, H55’s Bristell B23 Energic went literally from sea to shining sea, visited eight states, and proved its Electric Propulsion System (EPS) to be reliable and trouble-free.  According to H55, the small craft “completed 192 all-electric passenger flights, and [visited] 25 airports across Florida, Alabama, Arizona, Nevada, California, Colorado, Wisconsin, and New York. In Florida alone, the little Energic managed 14 Airport-to-airport flights, 36 demonstration flights, and 12 Static events.  H55 hosted 30 Certified Flight Instructors (CFI and CFII), aeronautical and aviation professors at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Liberty University, and Florida Institute of Technology, two aerospace …

Joby’s Autonomous Cessna and Its Competition

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Joby Aviation is testing an autonomous Cessna Caravan with the United States Air Force, part of “a successful demonstration and validation of its SuperpilotTM autonomous flight technology.”   The 208 Caravan logged more than 7,000 miles and 40 flight hours over the Pacific Ocean and Hawaii.  A similar Cessna 208 Caravan has been flying similar missions for Reliable Robotics.  And yet a third Caraban is flying for Merlin Labs on the U. S. East Coast and in New Zealand.  The three companies have chosen to test their autonomous systems on Caravans because of the craft’s reliability and availability worldwide. Over 3,000 Caravans worldwide and their Pratt & Whitney PT-6 turboprop engines contribute to their ongoing popularity. Joby and Its Superpilot According to a company press release, Joby’s autonomous control system, Superpilot, was integrated into a Cessna Caravan 208, and tasked with a variety of missions, including: Mission Readiness: Superpilot demonstrated the capability to execute rapid cargo deliveries, hub-and-spoke logistics, inter-island transport, dynamic retasking, …

Solarstratos’ New Altitude Record

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Raphael Domjan’s SolarStratos set a new world altitude record for solar-powered aircraft, 9,521 meters, or 31,237 feet, on August 12, 2025. That CBS News and other press outlets saw fit to cover the event is a significant change in coverage from just having the normal technical details explained in the aviation press. The network explained, “The SolarStratos plane made the landmark flight from Sion airport in southwest Switzerland on Tuesday, taking advantage of warm air thermals to go beyond the record that has stood for 15 years.  (That record was held by Andre’ Borschberg in the Solar Impulse.) “The certified altitude record for a solar plane stands at 9,235 meters, or 30,298 feet. “The achievement is ‘one of those unforgettable peaks that define great human and technological adventures,’ the SolarStratos mission said in a statement.” CBS noted the moment when Solarstratos crossed paths with a commercial airliner, “a powerful symbol of what the decarbonized aviation of tomorrow might look like.” …

Getting Battery Materials Without China or Child Labor

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Imagine finding essential battery materials in a common mineral and reducing atmospheric CO2 as a side benefit.  Imagine finding a source of these necessary materials without the need to negotiate with China or enrich those who employ child labor for their wealth.  Good News Network (not as Pollyanish as it may sound) featured a picture of a young woman working in a laboratory and the headline, “Chemical Process Produces Critical Battery Metals From This Unloved Mineral With No Waste.” Often, material other than the sought-for material is the largest amount of stuff removed from a mine.  Its worth is usually low because the labor and time involved in extracting any usable minerals is too great for the profits that might be realized.  This seems to be changing with a New Zealand firm called Aspiring Materials. Good News took its lead from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), which featured Aspiring Materials in its journal, IEEE Spectrum.   That journal …

Pivotal Helix Becomes Fire Department Volunteer

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The Pivotal Helix eVTOL (electric Vertical Take Off and Landing) Aircraft “Gains Warm Response from California Fire Agencies in Multi-Agency Demonstration Series.”  That’s the headline for a Pivotal press release on its recent demonstration for three southern California fire departments.  Seeming to be almost a response to Dr. Brien Seeley’s recent front-page opinion section editorial in the San Francisco Chronicle, Pivotal’s live show helped emergency responders see how rapid aerial response could aid their missions.   Dropping in on stations at the San Bernardino County Fire Department, Southern Marin Fire District (SMFD), and Cosumnes Fire Department, Pivotal personnel gave flight demonstrations and let firefighters try their hand at simulator flying. As Pivotal’s press release notes, “Each demo showcased the potential of Pivotal’s single-seat aircraft to dramatically improve emergency response capabilities, especially in locations where time, terrain and traffic can mean the difference between life and death.” Ken Karklin, CEO of Pivotal, added, “Our aircraft offers a cost-effective, rapidly deployable solution …