The ElectricAir plane is on approach before landing at Wellington Airport in Wellington, New Zealand, Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. Seeking to highlight the potential for green aviation as a pivotal climate change conference opened in Glasgow, New Zealand pilot Gary Freedman made the first-ever flight over Cook Strait in an electric plane. (Mark Mitchell/New Zealand Herald via AP)
By Nick Perry
As he made history by becoming the first person to fly across New Zealand's Cook Strait in an electric plane, Gary Freedman thought it only fitting that the first thing he saw when approaching the Wellington coastline was the rotating blade of a wind turbine producing renewable energy.
Freedman's 40-minute solo flight in the small two-seater came 101 years after the first person flew a conventional aircraft over the body of water that separates the South Pacific nation's two main islands.
Monday's flight was aimed at drawing attention to the possibilities of greener flying and timed to coincide with the opening of a pivotal U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland.
Wellington International Airport officials believe it may be the longest distance flown in an electric plane across any body of water.
“It's a very exciting day for the airport. A world-record-setting day," said spokesperson Jenna Raeburn.
Freedman said the day began badly with pouring rain at his departure point near the town of Blenheim. After delaying the flight for 15 minutes, the weather cleared just enough for takeoff and soon improved to sunny conditions over the ocean.
Freedman said he was ecstatic when he landed, and the technology worked better than he'd hoped.
“We still had 40% left in the battery,” he said. “We could have almost flown back again.”
Freedman, 49, who founded the company ElectricAir, said he's long been passionate about the environment and the idea came as he thought about the incongruity of driving an electric car and flying a gas-powered plane.
He took a trip to Slovenia to buy a Pipistrel Alpha Electro plane, and then jumped through various hoops with New Zealand aviation regulators to get the plane cleared.
It weighs less than 400 kilograms (880 pounds) and is much quieter than a traditional aircraft. For the 78 kilometer (48 mile) trip, Freedman flew it at just 1,000 feet (305 meters) above sea level and at the relatively slow speed of 130 kilometers per hour (81 mph) in order to preserve its charge.
Freedman said it takes about one hour to fully charge the plane. The maximum flight time is also about an hour, and he mainly uses it for pilot training.
Wellington International Airport is preparing for regular short-hop flights of new 12-seater electric planes that will begin in about five years' time, said Raeburn, the airport spokeswoman.
She said electric technology is not yet advanced enough to power large passenger planes, but biofuels and hydrogen will likely provide greener alternatives in the future.
A Ukraine city falls, if you have an Iconic Fitbit, you'll want to hear this, and leave Girl Scouts alone! Here is all the news you Need2Know for Thursday, March 3, 2022.
In the past few years, Betthany Frankel has made a major name for herself as a philanthropist after founding the
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Ari Redbord, Head of Legal and Government Affairs at TRM Labs, discusses how Binance, Coinbase and Kraken's decision to not unilaterally ban all Russian users from their platforms could put a dent in the West's plan to economically punish Russia.
One of Europe's leading micromobility providers, TIER mobility, is expanding into North America after acquiring the micromobility operator, Spin. Ford Motor Company previously owned Spin but is now selling the company to TIER Mobility, which says the deal will make it the largest multimodal micromobility operator in the world in terms of the number of cities it operates in and the number of vehicles in its fleet. Lawrence Leuschner, CEO of TIER Mobility, and Ben Bear, CEO of Spin, join Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
World Central Kitchen is Ukraine helping to feed people remaining in the country or fleeing from the Russian forces. Nate Mook, CEO for the non-profit, joined Cheddar New to discuss the efforts being made to help those in need in a very tenuous situation and how the invasion disrupted the lives of Ukrainian people."We met a young woman from Kyiv who had crossed into Poland, she had a great job, she just moved into a new apartment. She was really excited about decorating her apartment. You know, things that we all do on a day-to-day basis, and she had to just abandon her life," he said.
Digital consulting company Publicis Sapient has its sights set on the Metaverse. The subsidiary of the French advertising giant Publicis Group is announcing a new partnership with NFT auction house Portion in an effor to help brands deliver experiences in the metaverse, including the sales of products. Publicis Sapient CEO Nigel Vaz joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss. "In the context of our collaboration with Portion, the first experience that we created was with Decentraland, which is a virtual world," he said. "And car manufacturers in this metaverse, in terms of their buyers, can interact with a virtual person, (and) they can view quality NFTs. They can examine a virtual vehicle, be inside the car, rev an engine, open doors, all without leaving their homes."
National Eating Disorder Awareness Week is a campaign to educate the public about the harsh realities of eating disorders, but also to provide support and visibility to individuals and families affected by an eating disorder. Sarah Adler, clinical associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
Vittorio Assaf, co-founder of Serafina, joins Cheddar News to discuss two new concepts from Serafina Restaurants in NYC: Cafe Serafina and Serafina To-Go. Assaf also talks about the company's new cookbook.
