Icare’ 2’s 30th Anniversary

Dean Sigler Announcements, Batteries, hydrogen, Hydrogen Fuel, Solar Power, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

As  Icare’ 2 continues exploration of advanced aerodynamics, Karl Kaeser, CEO of Kasaero GmbH, reminds us of an important event in electric aviation, the 30th anniversary of Icare’ 2. Editor’s note.  Karl Kaeser made the following clarification (Seprember 3): “I have never been really involved with the Icaré aircraft. I’d rather see the name of Professor Vot-Nitschmann there or Werner “micro” Scholz.  As for the e-Genius Professor Voit-Nitschmann was also for the Icaré the leader of the design group. And micro was the research assistant who brought the Icaré to reality.”   “Exactly 30 years ago today (July 1), electric flight took off at the University of Stuttgart! “On 1 July 1996, the Icaré 2 successfully completed its maiden flight – a solar-electric motor glider developed at the University of Stuttgart – Institute of Aircraft Design (IFB). What may have seemed visionary at the time has since become part of a much larger story: three decades of research into electric flight. …

Dante AeroNautical Distributes Power

Dean Sigler Electric Powerplants, Hybrid Aircraft, Solar Power, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

In a dramatic rendering, Dante AeroNautical shows its DAX-19, a regional airliner that will distribute power along its wings, much like NASA’s X-57 Maxwell.  Dante describes the craft as representing, “The regional electric air travel of the future.” (In Dante’s web site, the triangle in place of the conventional “a” is the alchemical symbol for fire, or a clever marketing type’s attempt to draw our attention.) Helmut Penner, writing in Cockpit magazine, gives us the following: “Typically, small airlines make their aircraft purchases from major manufacturers, including the still-young Spanish low-cost airline Voltea, which operates 14 A319s and 17 Boeing 717s. But now [the company] is aiming for an ambitious project with the Dante AeroNautical, which is also based in Spain. Already in the middle of the next decade, a hybrid aircraft for 19 passengers to be developed will be used for short-haul flights.” A Small Airline Checks In Voltea “will work actively with Dante Aeronautical to develop this hybrid-electric …