The Heart ES-30 is set to be the biggest electric airliner around when it enters passenger service in 2028. But is it big enough... or is technology standing in the way of what airlines actually want? Richard Schuurman investigates
If you want to fly electric, your options are rather limited. A Pipistrel Velis Electro will take only two occupants, which Smartflyer intends to double with its SFX1 in late 2023. The Eviation Alice, which first flew in September, offers nine seats, while Tecnam and Rolls-Royce are working on the P-Volt, another nine-seater set for entry into service in 2026. And there’s the 19-seat Heart Aerospace ES-19, launched in 2018 that won backing from Finnair, United Airlines and Mesa Airlines in 2021.
But before the ES-19 has ever flown, the aircraft has been ditched. Bring on the ES-30, the larger 30-seater that was unveiled during Heart’s ‘Hangar Day’ in September at its headquarters at Säve Airport near Gothenburg, Sweden.
