A first for Estonia: Fully electric aircraft lands at Tartu Airport

Aviation history was made at Tartu Airport on Wednesday when the Elektra Trainer, a fully certified electric airplane, landed after a flight from Helsinki.
The aircraft is on a tour of Europe. From Tartu, the Elektra Trainer will travel through the other Baltic states and Poland, eventually completing its over 5,000-kilometer journey back where it began in Bavaria, Germany.
Pilot Uwe Nortmann described the experience: "It is not stressful; it is just fun. You could compare it to driving an electric car versus a car with an internal combustion engine. You are much more relaxed in an electric car because there is no need to speed. You want to save energy."
The environmental footprint of an electric aircraft is significantly smaller than that of a conventional gasoline-powered one.
The aircraft is also of great interest to Estonian aviation experts.
"While a conventional liquid-fuel aircraft loses mass during flight as it consumes fuel, an electric aircraft does not. The fuselage has been designed this way to maintain the center of gravity," said Karl-Erik Unt, head of the aviation engineering department at the Estonian Aviation Academy.
The Aviation Academy sees great potential for this new technology in initial pilot training, where cheaper electric energy helps keep training costs low.
"As long as the price of electricity remains reasonable, an electric airplane will be very beneficial for a flight school. You can do completely different things with an electric aircraft compared to a conventional internal combustion engine plane. It is simply different," said Unt.
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Editor: Elisabeth Ristmets, Valner Väino
Source: “Aktuaalne Kaamera”



















