EL-2 Goldfinch
In 2020, the American company for the production of air vehicles Electra, together with the US Air Force, began developing an aircraft with a shortened take-off and landing (ultra-STOL). The result of their efforts was the two-seat electric aircraft EL-2 Goldfinch, which had already completed the first two flights.
The new machine is a hybrid-electric aircraft with a shortened takeoff and landing — it is equipped with eight electric (four on each wing) engines. Installed in a special way, they pump additional air flow over the entire surface of the wing, thereby providing increased lift. This reduces the length of the run during takeoff.
EL-2 Goldfinch
The engines are powered by batteries charged before the flight, or recharged on the fly from a turbo generator (hybrid version). Goldfinch engines are much quieter and generate significantly less emissions than conventional aircraft. The first, fully "electric" flight took place on November 11, and the second — "hybrid-electric", which lasted 23 minutes, on November 19. Test pilot Kodi Ali managed to climb to an altitude of almost 980 m and fly about 50 km. In the future, the commercial production version of the prototype Electra will carry up to nine passengers at a distance of up to 805 km at a speed of 322 km / h, while a runway length of only about 50 meters will be enough for it to take off / land.
EL-2 Goldfinch
Alexander Ageev