Swedish hybrid-electric aircraft manufacturer Heart Aerospace has unveiled its first full-scale demonstrator aircraft in the development of its ES-30 hybrid-electric prototype for regional flights and other commercial purposes.
Heart Aerospace’s full-scale demonstrator
The demonstrator was built at the company’s Gothenburg facility and is named “Heart Experimental 1”(Heart X1), highlighting the company’s strategy of simultaneously developing design and production processes to accelerate the arrival of aerospace technologies to the market.
“Our industry is approaching a 30-year innovation cycle and we have less than 25 years to decarbonize aviation. We need to develop new methods to bring net-zero aerospace technologies to market faster. It is a testament to the ingenuity and dedication of our team that we can launch a 30-seat aircraft demonstrator with a completely new, largely in-house propulsion system in less than two years.”
Anders Forslund, co-founder and CEO of Heart Aerospace.
With a wingspan of 32 meters, the Heart X1 will serve as a platform for extensive ground testing, focusing on loading, taxiing and procedural operations. It is scheduled to perform its first all-electric first all-electric flight in the second quarter of 2025, as Heart Aerospace prepares to test critical systems in the coming months.
The development of the Heart X1 was made possible in part by grants from the Swedish Innovation Agency(Vinnova), highlighting the importance of collaboration between industry and government in creating sustainable aviation technologies. The experience gained with the Heart X1, on the other hand, will allow the company to company focus on building a pre-production prototype called Heart X2, which will fly with a hybrid-electric propulsion system in 2026.
Heart Aerospace’s ultimate goal is to obtain certification for the ES-30 by the end of the decade. This hybrid-electric regional aircraft, with a standard 30-seat capacity, offers a zero-emission electric range of 200 kilometers and an extended hybrid range of 400 kilometers. The company aims to change regional flights by offering a sustainable and efficient solution that will help decarbonize the industry.
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Source and photos: Heart Aerospace
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