PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - What will recreational flying be like in a few decades?
Old 23rd Nov 2015, 14:12
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cjm_2010
 
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: south wales
Age: 46
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Personally I'd be happy with a 912 powered CT2K....

I do think the future is electric but that's quite a way off. I have a Nissan Leaf as a daily driver & the simplicity of the drivetrain means almost perfect reliability, and it's costing me about 2p a mile to run.

I'd have no qualms with flying an electric aircraft! The biggest worry would be bearing failure or a thermal runaway in a cell (assuming LiPo chemistry hasn't been beaten for energy density). I know at least one manufacturer is looking at a simple swapping system, coupled with a cleverly shaped prop that can windmill on descent & put some energy back in - this is an area where EV beats ICE hands down. An engine can't put fossil fuel back into the fuel tanks!

Maybe the future lies in super efficient small displacement fuel injected powerplants pulling composite airframes around, kind of like what we have now, until battery tech has reached energy densities / kg close to that of fossil fuels.
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