Aviathor wrote:
I was under the impression that the A400 had entered service…
If you call that ‘service’, yes. Just Google it….
High weight aircraft will never be electric powered.
“never” is a big word. Too big for small humans.
High weight aircraft will never be electric powered —USFlyer, January 2016
“I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” — Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943.
“There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.” — Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977.
“Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?” — H. M. Warner, Warner Brothers, 1927.
“There will never be a bigger plane built.” — A Boeing engineer, after the first flight of the 247, a twin engine plane that holds ten people.
“With over 50 foreign cars already on sale here, the Japanese auto industry isn’t likely to carve out a big slice of the U.S. market.” — Business Week, August 2, 1968.
EASA and the FAA are trying to write certification specs and criteria for them at the moment. Noise is likely to be the biggest restriction though.
“never” is a big word. Too big for small humans.
True, but some things are difficult to see how they could come.
Electrical power is the classic one because it is so very obviously severely constrained, and to make it worse it is constrained in two places: the source and the storage. Nothing has happened at the source for, what, 100 years? The steam cycle and the alternator must be at least that old. Nuclear fusion is the only known way forward and that has had a “great future” for at least 50 years (I do wish they crack it). Regarding storage, there are really only batteries currently and they have improved by an order of magnitude over the last few decades but – apart from niche applications which for the most part are proving difficult to crack – are still a couple of orders of magnitude away from being useful. The niche apps rely heavily on subsidies… Solar power is where it was 40 years ago (except for subsidies). Wind power would be dead without subsidies. Electric cars are currently completely useless to most people, and what about subsidies? And they are living in a temporary dream-land – if they ever became big then taxes would be applied to road mileage, to recover the lost petroleum revenue.
The stuff about cars and computers never selling (and being proved totally wrong) is not applicable here because these technologies had no technical supply or demand constraints. It’s like saying a mobile phone has no use.
If we talk about electric large aircraft then we may as well talk about levitation. It is just as far away in that nobody has the slightest clue how to do it.
EASA and the FAA are trying to write certification specs and criteria for them at the moment. Noise is likely to be the biggest restriction though
That is like a turboprop 
It should not be more dangerous because a turbine blade will depart a jet engine just as easily as a “prop” blade will depart a prop. There is no real protection from either. Only the front compressor disk is protected from an exiting blade, AFAIK.
Flyer59 wrote:
actors talk?
“Flying bicycles mean empty cities” (1909) – Jules Bois New York Times
“Everything will be coated in plastic, and food comes in frozen bricks” (1950) Waldemar Kaempffert science editor of The New York Times
“Space travel for all by year 2000” (1952) Dr. Werner von Braun
Before the end of the 20th Century, “all travel by aerocars that can fly as well as ply the roads.” (1927) Popular Science British scientist A.M.
“dresses of asbestos that will be as lustrous as silk and will give long wear, with ease in cleaning.” (1929) article in Popular Mechanics“Good bye winter. Never again snow…” Der Spiegel, 1 April 2000
“The year 1999, seventh month / From the sky will come great king of terror.” Nostradamus
2012 is the end of the world – Mayan Calendar
Josh wrote:
Open rotors are coming
That was already “the next thing to come” when I studied aeronautical engineering in the first half of the 1980ies. I really hope they get their three big problems (noise, noise and even more noise) solved this time. The concept is excellent and for 10-20 percent loss in speed the fuel consumption can almost be reduced by 50 percent. Additionally, operations at low level (short range) are much more economical than with jets.
The batteries are the key, and a lot of money is beeing invested in that research now. Nobody can tell how long it will happen, but eventually there will be a breakthrough.
I don’t agree that electric cars are useless. I know three people now you have an X3 BMW and they would strongly disagree. It’s only true for long distances, but inside cities and metropolitan areas electric cars are a good solution.
Unfortunately there are two constraints, not one.
Work out the amount of energy required for an airliner to fly say 1000-5000nm, and delivered as electricity to each aircraft departing the local big airport.
This is as far out from being possible as anything else one can imagine.
All the 100 year old quotes from various self appointed evangelists are fun, but only fun.
Flyer59 wrote:
X3 BMW
Electric or hybrid? Do you mean the BMW i3? Tesla just made their 50,000 electric car…They have had two major recalls, the current one is for all 50,000. The GM Volt was a flop but that isn’t stopping them from coming out with yet another electric car. Ford is jumping in too. Most would agree that hybrids make sense but the Japanese have that market cornered…the Prius sells more than all others, for example.
Electric cars are one thing, electric trucks and electric large aircraft are a BIG leap – and not attainable for the foreeable future if at all. The big ‘breakthrough’ in battery tech has not materialized….
And for those that think electric cars are ‘green’ please remember the electricity comes from largely oil and coal plants and that means electric cars still generate more carbon than fossil fuel cars. Sure it sounds wrong, but until electricity is largely produced in a nuke plant (zero carbon footprint) or the electricity comes largely from alternative energy sources like solar plants or hydro, electric cars are still limited and no ones climate solution.
