World’s first electric air race announces eight teams to contest inaugural race
Press release
Tuesday 19 November, Dubai: Eight teams have been announced to contest the world’s first electric air race, Air Race E, in the fall of 2020.
The teams will make history when they line up on the grid in their custom modified electric race planes, to fly wing-tip-to-wing-tip in what will be a significant milestone for the aviation industry.
Air Race E CEO and Founder, Jeff Zaltman, asserts the series will be a unifying platform for the development of cleaner, faster and more technologically advanced electric aircraft. The racing series will provide a testbed for innovation and accelerate the journey towards electric commercial travel.
Speaking from the Dubai Airshow, Zaltman said, “These eight teams really are at the cusp of innovation in the electric aviation space and will play an important part in creating cleaner future air travel. We’re proud to provide them with a platform to put their technology to the test and see far reaching benefits to the aviation industry as a whole as we edge closer to making commercial electric flight a reality. We can’t wait to see them take to the air next year and we encourage sponsors to continue to get involved and support more teams vying to take part.”
Air Race E made the announcement today from the Dubai Airshow where the world’s first electric race airplane has been unveiled on a display in association with the series’ Official Founding Partner, Airbus. The plane belongs to the UK team, Team Condor, led by Martyn Wiseman of North Yorkshire. Together with his crew, Martyn has spent the past few months converting the Cassutt aircraft into a fully-electric racing machine, utilising a Contra Electric twin motor and contra-rotating propeller powertrain.
Team Condor will be competing with seven other teams from throughout Europe and North America to take the inaugural Air Race E title at a host venue to be announced in the coming months.
The race will be the first in a series of head-to-head international air races, showcasing the skills, expertise and ingenuity of the best pilots and engineers from around the world. Unlike similar racing events which operate on a time trial basis, Air Race E events will see eight planes fly simultaneously around a tight 5km circuit at just 10m above the ground and at speeds of up to 450kph – faster than any land-based motorsport.
The customised electric motors will enable the planes to fly with a max continuous power set at around 150kW, according to the electric formula. Teams will make use of lithium batteries installed under the fuselage of their planes to provide power for five minutes of high intensity racing and around 10 minutes of reserve flying at reduced power.
The teams are as follows:
Team Beta Technologies Racing (USA)
Team Leader: Kyle Clark
Team Leader: Kyle Clark
Team Blue-BETA Racing, based in Vermont, USA, is a partnership between propulsion and control system company BETA Technologies and, the advanced composites company, Blue Force Technologies, with Kyle Clark who’s the CEO and team leader of BETA.
Having already put an eVTOL in the air while also designing and building the world’s largest electric aircraft to have flown, Blue-BETA is now turning their attention to developing a plane for Air Race E.
Their plane, which is currently known as BB-23, will feature a battery system comprised of pouch-type lithium ion cells assembled into a pack with a custom battery management system, derived from their eVTOL program.
Team Outlaw (Canada)
Team Leader: Scott Holmes
Team Leader: Scott Holmes
Team Outlaw is bringing experience from formula one air racing to the new electric sport of Air Race E. With pilot and Team Leader Scott Holmes in the cockpit, the Canadians are adapting their 1993 Cassutt to be able to fly with electric power.
Scott has had his pilot’s licence since he was just 17-years-old and began racing at Reno and with Air Race 1 in 2016, competing at the World Cup in Thailand and the China Cup in Wuhan.
Based at Villeneuve Airport in Edmonton, Scott has a close-knit team backing him on the project to turn his plane ‘Outlaw’, so named because it doesn’t follow many of the airworthiness standards in Canada, into an electric air racer.
His crew includes; Bob Holmes, Kelly Green, Michelle Holmes, Eldon Gjesdal, Brian Murray and Karen Holmes. His development engineers are Roslynn Ricard, Seth Itow, Eric Tischer and Thomas Lockwood.
Having designed, built and modified racing airplanes for many years, Air Race E is business as usual for Team Outlaw, who have support from Precizion Services, Energy Efficient Homes, Arkk Engineering and ViScan Inspection Services.
Team Scramasaxe (France)
Team Leader: Eric de Barberin-Barberini
Team Leader: Eric de Barberin-Barberini
Based at Aérodrome de Cuers-Pierrefeu in the south east of France, Team Scramasaxe is led by Eric de Barberin-Barberini, a former fighter pilot who has set five aviation world speed records in his aircraft, Shark.
Team Scramasaxe, named after a short sword used in the early French Middle ages, is looking forward to the challenge of electric air racing, mixing new technology, speed and competition.
During the development phase, Eric is working alongside fellow team members Didier Ledoux, Frederic Maunier and Henri Giordano to build a plane which is derived from his award-winning Shark Ultra Light.
Currently named ‘Scramasaxe E project’ in prototype, modifications include a tricycle landing gear incorporating a retractable front wheel, while the air foil will be modified to sustain speeds as high as 500km/hr.
Team Möbius (USA)
Team Leader: Carl Copeland
Team Leader: Carl Copeland
Team Möbius, based in Fort Worth, Texas, is led by Carl Copeland, a serial entrepreneur and CEO of MμZ Motion whose company produces custom, high-performance motion solutions for the robotics market.
With a life-long passion for aviation and aerospace, Copeland recognized a significant opportunity to bring his knowledge and expertise to Air Race E, linking up with fellow aviation enthusiast and pilot, Christopher Williams.
Initially for the first year of Air Race E, Möbius – named after the möbius strip infinity loop - plans to modify an existing formula one racer to use with their electric power system.
Their plane is still in the very early stages of development and has yet to be given a name, but the intention is to use a new type of electric motor, designed by MμZ Motion, that is smaller and lighter than current electric motors.
In the future Möbius hopes to introduce a more customized aircraft with innovative profiles, control mechanisms and advanced propeller designs.
Team Hangar-1 (Germany)
Team Leader: Adrian Schmer
Team Leader: Adrian Schmer
Based at facilities in Oldenburg-Hatten and Leer-Papenburg in northern Germany, Team Hanger-1, named in conjunction with their main sponsor Flugwerft Hangar-1 GmbH, is led by the company’s CEO Adrian Schmer, SEP and aerobatics instructor.
Schmer’s team working on the developments of their plane, Eline Tjaden, Chris Höland, Jakob Møller and Ingo Seidl, are self-confessed aviation junkies excited by the challenge of Air Race E.
They have a concept for their aircraft and are currently looking at the options of modifying a Cassutt IIIM or Sonerai I Formula Vee plane, integrating an electric engine made by Geiger Engineering, to become their eventual racer. It will be called ‘Skyflash One’, named after their aerobatic flight school ‘Skycrobatics’.
The ‘Hangar-1 Crew’, as they are affectionately known, are also working on their business plan to look for technical partners for the team.
Team Allways Air Racing (USA)
Team Leader: Casey Erickson
Team Leader: Casey Erickson
Team AllWays Air Racing is based in California, USA and has pilot and captain Casey Erickson at the helm. She is a certified flight instructor and has flown many different types of aircraft, including commercial fixed wing, helicopter and sUAS aircraft, and also has a private glider rating.
Having piloted in aerobatics competitions, she was side-lined by a back injury, so in 2008 started racing in the biplane class at Reno. Casey also owns a formula one air race plane.
After talking to a number of different aircraft designers, Casey and her team decided to work on a derivative of the Snoshoo, an American home-built formula one racer designed by Alan VanMeter and AJ Smith. The Allways Air Racing Snoshoo SR1.1 will be named ‘The Gulf Oil Racer’ and is being developed at Redlands Airport, near San Bernadino.
Casey is being supported by a team that includes AJ Smith, who built the airframe and carbon fibre shell, Craig Catto, who built the tail group and prop, and Grove Aircraft, who built the landing gear and braking system. Bobbi Graham and Jason Cowls will also be involved.
The team is still in the initial assembly phase and plans to have a completed aircraft to begin engine runs in early spring 2020.
Team NL (Netherlands)
Team Lead: Rick Boerma
Team Lead: Rick Boerma
When Dutchman Rick Boerma heard about Air Race E and their exciting project, his first option was to launch his own team. So, along with a group of engineering graduates, Team NL is building a new aircraft for the race, completely from scratch.
Boerma, a life-long aviation fanatic, started flying gliders at the age of 14 and, while studying aerospace engineering at university, began to dream of designing and building his own aircraft.
Now, that dream is turning into a reality, development has begun of the as yet unnamed plane, which has adopted the moniker ‘Fanta’ due to its orange colour. The aircraft will feature a conventional low-wing design with two electric motors that power two contra-rotating propellers.
Team Condor Racing (UK)
Team Leader: Martyn Wiseman
Team Leader: Martyn Wiseman
Martyn Wiseman, managing director of Condor Aviation International, is the leader of Team Condor, based in Barlby, North Yorkshire, England.
Born and raised in Zambia, Martyn has been involved in aviation for over 20 years, initially as a hobby and, more recently, as a professional operation. His company specialises in R&D and aircraft modification and will use Air Race E as a platform to showcase their skills, as they help to develop green aviation technology.
For their electric air racer, Team Condor has used an existing airframe, completely revamping the engine cowling to incorporate items such as a contra-rotating propeller system, electric motors, inverters and radiators.
At their team headquarters, where they have their own airfield with 600m runway, their attention is currently focused on the battery technology and how they can integrate this into the aircraft.
Martyn has a strong group supporting the developments of White Lightning, with principal engineer Dean Speight;senior design engineer Oliver Riddle being helped by Charlotte Jennings; assistant design engineer and Benas Laurinavicius, undergraduate engineer.
They have also had input from local work placement students and apprentices, who have provided an invaluable contribution to the project, while sponsorship backing comes from Potenza Ltd, Contra Electric Propulsion and Teesside University.
Air Race E remains open for parties to register their interest in entering or sponsoring a team or hosting a future race.
Cranfield Aerospace Solutions (CAeS) announces £9m UK government grant for the development of electric flight
- Development of hybrid-electric propulsion into commercial aviation takes a significant step forward
- UK set to lead the world with the first commercial passenger flights using electric aircraft
- Industry-leading innovators: Denis Ferranti, Rolls-Royce, Cranfield University, Delta Motorsport, Britten-Norman and WMG (University of Warwick) collaborate with CAeS
CAeS, a leading aircraft integrator in green commercial aviation, has received the backing of the UK Government for a project to develop electric aviation. Project Fresson has received a grant of £9 million to design, manufacture and integrate a hybrid-electric propulsion system into a 9-seat Britten-Norman (B-N) Islander aircraft, which is typically used on short flights such as island-hopping routes. The grant is provided through the ATI Programme: a partnership of the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI), the Department for Business, Energy & Industry Strategy, and Innovate UK to maintain and grow the UK’s competitive position in civil aerospace design and manufacture.
Mark Scully, Head of Technology for Advanced Systems & Propulsion at the ATI, said: “Project Fresson brings together a great partnership to develop innovative technology for a sustainable all-electric air transport solution for isolated islands. The partners’ ultimate goal of delivering the first commercial passenger-carrying all-electric aircraft service in the UK will mark a significant breakthrough for all-electric propulsion.”
Industry collaboration will fuel green transport revolution
The Project Fresson team includes UK businesses: Rolls-Royce, who will be supplying the power management system; the Denis Ferranti Group, supplying the electric motors; Delta Motorsport, providing battery packs; WMG (University of Warwick), who will perform battery testing and characterisation, and Britten-Norman, the aircraft OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) providing the baseline aircraft and aircraft data/design support. CAeS parent Cranfield University will be researching key technology solutions vital for the 30-month project.
Paul Hutton CAeS CEO, said: “The results of this exciting electric aircraft demonstrator project can be rapidly developed into an EASA/CAA (European Aviation Safety Agency/Civil Aviation Authority) certified modification kit, enabling the UK to lead the way with the first passenger-carrying sub-regional aircraft capable of all-electric flight. The strength of the industrial partners involved in this project, are underpinned by the world-class aerospace/manufacturing research capabilities of Cranfield University. This is going to accelerate our green transport revolution.”
The Fresson project supports Rolls-Royce’s commitment to making aviation more sustainable. This electric flight technology demonstrator enables Rolls-Royce to introduce a new concept in aircraft-level power distribution control that optimises all the elements of the power and propulsion system.
Alan Newby, Rolls-Royce, Director, Aerospace Technology & Future Programmes said: “We are excited to be involved in this project, which combines our commitment to support the de-carbonisation of aviation with our ability to solve complex problems with pioneering solutions. Project Fresson is another valuable opportunity for us to remain a leader in delivering the electrification of flight, an important part of our sustainability strategy.”
Professor Iain Gray, Cranfield University Director of Aerospace, said: “Cranfield University is recognised around the world for its Aviation Systems Integration capability and is focussed around research and development of zero-emission technologies. We are pleased to be a technology partner on Project Fresson which is at the forefront of turning the commercial use of electric aircraft into a reality.”
Following the demonstrator project, CAeS will go on to certify the modification through EASA to obtain a Supplemental Type Certificate. This will then be immediately available in the global market, allowing the current operators of the 400+ B-N Islanders to convert their aircraft reducing operating costs and their carbon footprint.
William Hynett, Chief Executive of Britten-Norman, said: “At Britten-Norman we are committed to innovation which we support through a dedicated Research & Development team. Our team is looking forward to working closely with Cranfield Aerospace Solutions and its other partners in driving forward this industry-leading green initiative programme for the electrification of the Islander.”
“Our aircraft makes an ideal launch platform for this programme due to its renowned reliability and adaptability. We remain highly enthusiastic about the prospects of bringing this important capability to our vitally important short-sector market.”
In follow-on phases of CAeS’s green aircraft strategy the intention is to design and implement a similar modification, this time to a larger existing 19-seat sub-regional aircraft type, continuing with partners to design and build a new 19-seat aircraft. The design of the new aircraft will be optimised for emission-free propulsion, making use of the certified propulsion systems architecture from the earlier phases.
About Cranfield Aerospace SolutionsCAeS is a long-established aerospace company with whole aircraft concept design and EASA/CAA aircraft Design Organisation (DOA) and aircraft Production Organisation (POA) approvals. These capabilities and broad ranging approvals have been built up over more than twenty years, due to being sought out by all the major global aerospace OEMs to carry out modification and demonstrator projects for them. The Company’s core strategy is focused on green aviation products, including: Electric Conventional Take Off and Landing (eCTOL) sub-regional aircraft and Electric Vertical Take Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
About the ATI ProgrammeThe ATI Programme is a joint Government-industry investment to maintain and grow the UK’s competitive position in civil aerospace design and manufacture. The programme, delivered through a partnership between the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI), Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and Innovate UK, addresses technology, capability and supply chain challenges.
About Rolls-Royce Holdings plc
- Rolls-Royce pioneers cutting-edge technologies that deliver clean, safe and competitive solutions to meet our planet’s vital power needs.
- Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers.
- Annual underlying revenue was £15 billion in 2018, around half of which came from the provision of aftermarket services.
- In 2018, Rolls-Royce invested £1.4 billion on research and development. We also support a global network of 29 University Technology Centres, which position Rolls-Royce engineers at the forefront of scientific research.
- The Group has a strong commitment to apprentice and graduate recruitment and to further developing employee skills.
About Delta MotorsportDelta Motorsport is an innovative and creative engineering business, based at the world-famous Silverstone circuit, in the heart of the UK’s high-performance technology cluster.
It focuses on three main product streams; battery systems, vehicle “platform” control and its in-house catalytic generator. Each is approached with the same robust but lightweight philosophy, honed through decades spent in the high-pressure motorsport sector.
Delta also has a vehicle engineering and integration capability that has seen it deliver many whole vehicle projects, for start-ups and OEMs alike. Its multidisciplinary team supports a wide range of sectors and its capability covers services from initial concept through to low volume production.
About Britten-Norman and the IslanderBritten-Norman is the UK’s only EASA A2 approved aircraft manufacturer. Britten-Norman have designed and built aircraft and aircraft systems for over 60 years. The Britten-Norman Islander is one of the world’s most successful and enduring aircraft designs.
The aircraft’s international acclaim is attributed to its exemplary performance as a high capacity, multi-role, high frequency, rough terrain, short take-off and landing platform.
About WMGWMG is a world leading research and education group transforming organisations and driving innovation through a unique combination of collaborative research and development, and pioneering education programmes.
As an international role model for successful partnerships between academia and the private and public sectors, WMG develops advancements nationally and globally, in applied science, technology and engineering, to deliver real impact to economic growth, society and the environment.
WMG’s education programmes focus on lifelong learning of the brightest talent, from the WMG Academies for Young Engineers, degree apprenticeships, undergraduate and postgraduate, through to professional programmes.
An academic department of the University of Warwick, and a centre for the HVM Catapult, WMG was founded by the late Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya in 1980 to help reinvigorate UK manufacturing and improve competitiveness through innovation and skills development.
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