Avi is mainly retrofitted to six short-haul (less than 300km) short-haul general-purpose aircraft, and will gradually expand its products to 9-, 19-, and larger models.
The current passenger aircraft are driven by aviation fuel. Aviation fuel has always been the largest operating cost of airlines. The pollution generated by the aviation industry has also been criticized by the industry. The trend of electrification in the field of flight is gradually becoming more prominent. The Swedish government has already stipulated that by 2030, all domestic air travel will use fossil-free fuel, and large aircraft manufacturers have turned their attention to electric aircraft.
In 2017, Boeing invested in the electric aircraft startup Zunum Aero; Airbus announced a partnership with Siemens to launch the electric-powered City-Airbus project. In addition, I have introduced the two electric aircraft companies in the YC Demo Day roadshow Wright Electric and Heart Aerospace. Recently, I was exposed to “Ampaire Inc. A start-up company in the field of electric aircraft, the company adopted a solution to replace the internal combustion engine with an electric power system. At present, Anfei’s first electric oil hybrid aircraft product “Ampaire EEL” has completed the first flight test, and the company has also received 116 customer orders (including purchase options). Founded in Los Angeles in 2016, Anfei has established a branch in Hangzhou to prepare for flight test in China’s airspace and to explore the Chinese and Asian markets in the future.
Ampaire EEL is based on 6 Cessna 337 Skymasters and is equipped with Avi’s self-developed electric propulsion system, which contains a light battery system, and the is a A kind of “parallel hybrid power” can optimize the power output of internal combustion engines and electric motors during flight to maximize energy efficiency. In the range of the aircraft’s target range (about 320 kilometers), it can effectively reduce the fuel cost by 75%. In addition to fuel costs, electric aircraft can provide quiet, clean flight services, and the maintenance costs of electric propulsion systems are much lower than traditional internal combustion engines.
Ampaire EEL Source: Anfei
The reason for this effect is that it benefits from the aircraft’s electrification technology, which is also the core technical expertise of Anzhen.
Anfei co-founder and CTO Kong Rui told that the aircraft’s electrification transformation is not simply using a motor instead of a fuel engine, but a system engineering that needs to be coordinated The system maximizes the efficiency of each component and system. The electric powertrain system developed by Affy is versatile enough to meet the needs of several existing models and new aircraft. It is worth mentioning that Anfei’s unique parallel hybrid system can be retrofitted with existing battery technology to minimize fuel consumption while minimizing battery weight. There are regulatory requirements for emergency redundant energy reserves.
Why can Anfei do this technology? This is inseparable from the background of the Anfei team, and the founding core team of Anfei has extensive experience in the field of new energy vehicles and aviation.
Co-founder and CEO Kevin has worked for the Grumman Group and has led the development and deployment of high-end aircraft and satellite technology, with extensive research and development and project management. Experience;Co-founder and CTO Kong Rui graduated from Stanford University and worked in the Grumman Group, where he was responsible for the research and development of new aircraft; Vice President Yu Shuzheng < /span>Pre-Boeing Research and Technology Director, former China Commercial Aircraft Model Total System Integrator; Vice President Peter Sawagian is Former General Motors (GM) The chief engineer of electric vehicles and senior vice president of Faraday Future has a deep research on electric systems.
In terms of customer and revenue, Avi is mainly in the B2B model, providing products and services to airlines and charter operators, but also providing high-net-worth individuals.Some early B2C sales. At present, Anfei’s aircraft is still in the experimental stage, so there is no sales revenue. Kong Rui told that in the future, the main income of Anfei will mainly come from the sales of aircraft, the after-sales service signed by operators and the continuous upgrade of after-sales aircraft (such as providing battery replacement and powertrain maintenance, installing iterative battery packs or avionics). Equipment, etc.).
Ampaire EEL in the landing Source: An Fei
Anfei is mainly for the transformation of six short-haul (300km) short-distance general-purpose aircraft, and will gradually expand the product to the 9-seat, 19-seat and larger models. To be commercially available, an electric aircraft must undergo several steps of ground testing, flight testing, and component/machine certification. At present, Anfei’s electric aircraft has entered the flight test phase. It is expected to complete the second upgraded “EEL” modification at the end of 2019 and use commercial routes with Hawaiian Mokulele Airlines for a period of six The monthly operational flight test, cooperative testing of pre-production models, hopes to complete the FAA 23 forensics in 2021 and commercialize it. The company’s ultimate goal is to provide electric planes to short-haul regional airlines.
Market, previously UBS has published a report Expected, the global hybrid aviation market is approximately $178 billion. According to a report by Cape Air for NASA, over the next 20 years, more than 11,000 of the few common 9-seat models will need to be replaced, currently 5-19 aircraft The average selling price of $5 million (including business jets) is calculated without accounting for inflation, and the market is only $5.5 billion.
Compared with the development route of electric vehicles, we can also roughly see the development route of electric aircraft. Start with hybrids, start short-term applications, and gradually develop to pureThe level of power long-distance applications. However, unlike cars, aircraft R&D thresholds and regulatory thresholds are higher, and the infrastructure of aircraft is far from complete, so the time and money required are at least an order of magnitude difference. UBS had predicted that the world’s first 50-70 hybrid electric aircraft would be delivered as early as 2028.
It is reported that Anfei has already obtained millions of dollars in financing. Investors include Mingshi Capital and a number of individual investors, and are currently seeking Series A financing.