This zero-emissions plane is expected to make a run for the record books with a target speed of 300+ MPH (480+ KMH). The 24ft-wide carbon-fibre aeroplane is being constructed by a 20-man team led by Rolls-Royce at a hangar the Staverton site.
The company hopes the plane will hit a world-beating top speed of more than 300mph when it takes to the skies over the UK in the first half of next year. The current record is 213mph, it was set last year by German-built Extra Aircraft 330LD, powered by a Siemens electric motor.
Inside a bustling hangar bay at the far end of Gloucestershire airport in South West England, a team of British engineers, designers, and data specialists recruited from across Rolls-Royce and beyond have set out to make history. They’re building a high-performance electric aeroplane unlike anything the world has ever seen. Scheduled to take to the skies over Great Britain in 2020, the aircraft will reach a speed of 300 mph – and quite likely more – making it the fastest all-electric plane in history.
This run for the record books is no stunt. It’s part of a Rolls-Royce initiative called ACCEL – short for “Accelerating the Electrification of Flight” – that’s intended to pioneer a third wave of aviation in support of Rolls-Royce’s strategy to champion electrification.
