Lighting fast visit for electric plane

Air New Zealand flight ops manager Andrew Mercer explains the new plane to a group of American golfers who spotted it from a private helicopter on their way past Taupō Airport. Photo: Dan Hutchinson

 Air New Zealand flew its new electric plane into Taupō last week as part of a reconnaisance trip down the country.

The BETA ALIA CX300 is doing a series of flights as part of the airline’s Next Generation Aircraft technical demonstrator programme, in partnership with US aerospace company BETA Technologies.

Air New Zealand flight ops manager for the programme Andrew Mercer says they are starting to look at soome of the regional routes that could benefit from the aircraft.

The Wellington to Marlborough route will be the first for the aircraft , which is being used for freight initially. The aircraft can carry 550kg plus two pilots.

Andrew says a Taupō to Wellington route wouldn’t be on the radar initially because the plane doesn’t have the range, however shorter trips to Hamilton, Tauranga or Napier could be an option.

The running costs of the electric plane are low, using about $50 worth of power to get from Hamilton to Taupō last week.

Alex Scaperotta from Beta says they are working on larger, longer-range aircraft, but started with a smaller version in order to get it to market.

They also have a version with propellors that tilt upward, allowing for vertical take-off.