Airbus and Siemens will build electric and hybrid aircraft engines

Airbus E-Fan Airliner

Airbus and Siemens are starting to work together to create hybrid electric engines. Company executives planned to show workable hybrid systems by 2020. Aviation will be electrified by a specially created team of more than 200 specialists.

“Flights with electric and hybrid electric systems are one of the most difficult challenges facing modern aviation, aiming at achieving zero emissions,” said the director of the Airbus Group, Tom Enders, in a press release . “We are confident that by 2030, passenger planes with a capacity of up to 100 seats will already be able to fly with the help of hybrid engines, and we will strive for this with the help of our first-class partners, such as Siemens.”
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In both companies, they believe that hybrid electric systems will help reduce both the emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere and the level of noise in the cabin. By 2050, the European Union plans to reduce CO ₂ emissions by 75% compared with 2000.

Companies will develop engines of various classes with capacities ranging from 100 kW to 10 MW and more. The first prototype of such a system was presented together with the Austrian company Diamond Aircraft back in 2011.

In 2015, Siemens introduced an aviation electric motor with record-breaking characteristics - an engine weighing only 50 kg develops a power of 260 kW. These characteristics of the engine allow you to create aircraft with a take-off weight of up to two tons. At the same time for the operation of the propeller does not require a transmission, since the engine produces 2500 revolutions per minute.


The engine is Frank Anton, head of aviation research, eAircraft, at Siemens

In turn, the Airbus Group in 2014 introduced the E-Fan two-seater electric aircraft, created with the support of the French government. A rather quiet carbon fiber electric aircraft weighs about 500 kg, uses lithium-ion polymer batteries and is equipped with two 60 kW motors. The flight hour costs about £ 10, and the batteries fully charge in 90 minutes. It should go on sale within two years.


E-Fan from Airbus

Among competitive projects, NASA and Boeing can collaborate on the SUGAR Volt hybrid electric aircraft (“subsonic ultra-green aircraft research” - “a study on the creation of a highly ecological, subsonic aircraft) - an aircraft working on a combination of electric energy stored in batteries and classic fuel. The project was first made public in 2012.



According to the plan, the usual fuel will be used in such energy-consuming maneuvers as take off, and in flight the engines of the aircraft for the most part or almost all will be powered by batteries. The company did not name the exact dates, and also plan to issue the finished product by about 2030-2050.