ZeroAvia and Natilus Partner on Blended Wing Cargo Plane

Dean Sigler Announcements, Electric Powerplants, Fuel Cells, hydrogen, Hydrogen Fuel, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

ZeroAvia, maker of hydrogen-Electric powerplants for zero-emission aviation, has been selected to partner with Natilus, “a leading innovator in designing and developing new autonomous blended-wing-body (BWB) cargo aircraft.”  Kona, smallest of the pack, will carry a 3.8-ton (7,600-pound), while Natilus’ web site shows three additional BWBs, jumping to 60, 100, and 130 tons cargo-carrying capacity and maximum takeoff weights of up to nearly a million pounds. For a fact sheet on all the designs, click here. As an option to conventional turboprops, two ZeroAvia’s ZA600s producing 600 kilowatts (804 horsepower) each will power Kona, with its 26-meter (85-foot) wingspan capable of carrying its load 900 nautical miles (1,667 kilometers) at a cruising speed of 220 knots (407 kilometers) per hour. …

To the Contrary, Propeller-Wise

Dean Sigler Electric Aircraft Components, Electric Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation 1 Comment

Sacramento, California based CR Flight is dedicated to building highly-efficient motor/propeller combinations based on contra-rotation – propellers turning contrary to one another.  Not to be confused with counter-rotation – two propellers driven by two different engines and turning in opposite directions – contra-rotating propellers are driven in tandem by the same engine.  In the case of CR Flight, they are driven by the same electric motor.  Their web site shows a simple animation of the result.  An instructive video provides details about the benefits and drawbacks of the concept.   The firm’s mission statement gives a hint of its character.  “CR Flight™ partners with established industry leaders to design, patent, license, manufacture and provide the industry’s only patented counter-rotating motors …