@RR-NDB I think we,re all happy with the notion that the main problem is centred around the care of thr battery. As you say, the voltage-range on a laptop "full" to "empty" is only 1V. This has to be taken in context. the discharge characteristics of the cell are such that there is minimal voltage-change over a large portion of the charge/discharge curves. A bit like the "reserve"fuel that every commercial aircraft tankers around on every flight....it only gets used in the rare case like the GIMLI Glider I don't know the statistics but would hazard a guess of once in 5 years worldwide.
Despite the forgoing, the SAFE USABLE amount of power is still ahead on the weight/volume stakes.
Yet here we have 50 aircraft which have, statistically, EACH used up their "reserve electricity" supply 3 TIMES in their service-life.
That doesn't even factor-in the age-spread across deliveries, so the mean aircraft service- life is probably ~2 years....That makes the apparent cover-up even more dramatic.
Were each individual sub-cell to be spaced above and below with a thermal insulator and connected to it's "common" (Paralleling) busbars with fusible-links, this, IMO would go some way towards addressing the present inherent problems.
Any faulty/abused sub-cell would tend to self-isolate and burn itself out without compromising the entire cell and battery-pack. Yes, i appreciate it would reduce the capacity of the individual cell-assembly,but the whole battery could still be available.
Regarding the modellers....there are a LOT more out there than the number of "screamliner2 batteries in service....by the nature of things, their usage is much more erratic, timewise, their charge-discharge cycles are heavy, intense and frequent. there are THOUSANDS of sucessful flights performed worldwide every week...so the "Crash'n burn scenario is statistically miniscule....and these are not "Certified by the CAA" but commercial, cheap as chips, mainstream items bought and operated by untrained/self-taught amateurs..
I'd suggest anyone interested ,should look at the "RUNRYDER" model Heli forum. a perusal of the electric Fora could prove enlightening.