Originally Posted by
Wizofoz
The company said this is a "parallel hybrid," meaning the internal combustion engine and electric motor work to optimize power output as the plane flies.
https://www.dw.com/en/ampaire-test-f...ane/a-49098126
Looks like they put an electric unit in the rear, while keeping the recip in the front- and STILL needed a pod to house the batteries.
I suppose one way you could try to make a parallel hybrid work would be to have an ICE running at a constant power output, set to be just a little above cruise power. Surplus power would be electrified and stored in the battery or capacitor, to be used for times of high power need, like take off and climb. It's the principle called a "mild hybrid" in cars.
In land transport, with weight not being a critical factor and constant variation of speed to charge the battery, I can see this might be a win, with a smaller ICE running more of the time in its most efficient regime. I would be very sceptical about an aviation application, but I know nothing, and it would presumably take some fairly serious analysis to see if the added complexity was worth the gains. Does anyone have information?