Spirit of Innovation, the winged EV developed by Rolls-Royce took off for a test flight this fall and may well have landed after setting a top speed record for an electric…well, anything.
The single-prop plane hit 387.4 miles per hour on its whirlwind tour of the skies above Bonneville, but the all-electric world speed record of 387.4 is just one of three records which Spirit of Innovation may be awarded. It also sustained a top speed of 345.4 MPH for 3 kilometers, and 330 MPH over 15 kilometers. Finally, it climbed to an altitude of 3,000 meters in 202 seconds.
Jet exhaust is believed to be a primary cause of global heating and resulting climate change, and the concept of ‘jet zero’ — a transportation standard free of CO2 emissions — is something of the alternative energy world is tirelessly working to achieve. In light of the recent climate change conference in Scotland, the project is likely to remain a central preoccupation for Rolls-Royce.
The Spirit of Innovation aircraft is an important step toward electric planes. The plane is associated with the Accelerating the Electrification of Flight project, or ACCEL. It is powered by a 400 kW powertrain that produces over 500 horsepower.
