Rolls-Royce claims to have set three world records with the Spirit of Innovation, which it developed as the world’s fastest electric airplane. The electric plane, which took off from the British Ministry of Defense test airfield not too long ago, recorded a top speed of 623 km/h, setting a world record for electric planes.
Rolls-Royce has been redesigned from the ground up to break the 2017 338 km/h record. A taxi test driving on the ground was conducted last March with a 400kW motor and a 6,000 cell battery, and in September, the first flight was completed for 15 minutes.
After that, it entered the higher-altitude test phase and recently set three world records: 202 seconds to reach an altitude of 3,000 m, a speed of 555.9 km/h during a 3 km flight, and 532.1 km/h at a 15 km flight. Meanwhile, the top speed of 623 km/h was also recorded.
Test pilot Phil O’Dell said it was a highlight and an astonishing achievement in his career, making his dream of making the future a reality.
Rolls-Royce CEO Warren East noted the need to act globally at COP26, saying the advanced batteries and propulsion technology developed for this program will provide exciting applications for the advanced air mobility market. It will be a new milestone, he said. Related information can be found here.