The Archaeopteryx E

Dean Sigler Electric Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation 2 Comments

Two Swiss students, David Braig and Thomas Hewel at the ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, have adapted a pair of small electric motors to the Archaeopteryx ultralight hang glider. A Swiss, high-end product by Ruppert Composite GmbH Hittenberg, the motorless version has recently achieved a flight of 407 kilometers (252.3 miles) from a foot-launched start! Braig and Hewel, probably realizing that not all locales provide mountain peaks from which to hop off, developed a simple, detachable system to allow self-launching from flat terrain. The system has two carbon fiber wing “I-pods” that hold the motor, aluminum motor mounts and batteries, and an “E-box” in the cockpit, with cables connecting the elements. Total weight is 16.6 kilograms (36.52 pounds), which is a significant boost in the normal airplane empty weight of 54 kilos (118.8 pounds). One writer noted that the 100,000 Euro cost for the airplane meant a price over $1,000 per pound – high end indeed. You get what you pay …