Heart Aerospace weighs future test flights after X-1 electric demonstrator debut
After the successful maiden flight of its X-1 electric demonstrator, Heart Aerospace says it has not decided whether the aircraft will fly again as it reviews data and turns attention to its next model.
Heart Aerospace has not committed to further test flights of its X-1 electric demonstrator following the aircraft's first flight on 12 August, according to the company's chief executive, Anders Forslund.
The 27-minute flight departed from Plattsburgh International Airport in upstate New York. The X-1, described as the world's largest electric aircraft by volume, reached 1,100ft above ground level, below its 2,000ft ceiling, in what the company called a deliberately limited test envelope.
Forslund told reporters that the firm is still analysing data from the flight and has not decided whether to schedule additional sorties. He said most of what engineers learn from a program like this happens before the aircraft ever leaves the ground. Should Heart pursue more test flights, the company would first need to define the objective and what additional information it hopes to gain, he said.
Heart said the X-1 program produced lessons in composite structures, electric propulsion, and fly-by-wire systems that are already feeding into the design of its ES-30 pre-production aircraft, a related model.
The first flight had been delayed by at least six months after the company found disbonding of composite material in the wing and tail, requiring a wing rebuild. Despite the setback, Heart said the process helped it build up its flight-test capabilities.
The company's attention is already shifting toward its next aircraft, which it expects to fly in 2028.
Sources
- flightglobal.comHeart takes stock after X-1 first flight before committing to further sorties