Hybrid Electric Aircraft to Improve Environmental Impacts of General Aviation

According to two recent reports (ATAG 2018; IHLG 2019), the aviation sector represents a major economic factor for the global economy: its economic value is estimated at $2.7 trillion and it generates 65.5 million jobs. In 2018 airlines carried more than 4.3 billion passengers on scheduled flights, an increase of 6.4 percent from 2017; the number of departures grew from 36.7 million to approximately 38 million, an increase of 3.5 percent; and traffic in revenue passenger per kilometer expanded by 4.1 percent. International air traffic is expected to continue increasing, with average growth forecasts for the next 20 years of 4.1 percent per year. Here, Botti reports that hybrid electric aircraft can improve environmental impacts of general aviation.