Introduction of Electric Aircraft in Norway
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Røst airport. (Photo: Ørjan Arntsen) INTRODUCTION OF ELECTRIC AVIATION IN NORWAY Feasibility study by Green Future AS Author: Jan Otto Reimers 22 March 2018 Feasibility study assigned by: Avinor - Norwegian administrator of state owned airports and navigation service NLF - Norwegian Airsport Federation NHO Luftfart - Federation of Norwegian Aviation Industries, represented by SAS and Widerøe INTRODUCTION OF ELECTRIC AVIATION IN NORWAY 22 March 2018 ACKNOWLEDGMENT This study was prepared by Green Future AS. The project manager was Jan Otto Reimers. Adam Hadhazy provided editorial assistance. The text was based on public sources including white papers, research papers, books, news media articles, journal perspective articles, interviews with companies and stakeholders, and more. Avinor, Siemens, Bauhaus Luftfahrt, Flying Pages, Pipistrel, Zunum, Ampaire, Widerøe, Eviation, Bell Helicopter, Airbus and NASA are thanked for their support during the preparation of this study. GREEN FUTURE Green Future AS provides advisory services and analyses evaluating future development trends and strategies for technologies including renewable energy, energy management, battery powered drive systems, wireless communication, Internet of things and autonomous systems. AVINOR Avinor administers the 45 state-owned airports and air navigation services for civilian and military aviation in Norway. Avinor is a driving force in environmental work in aviation and a driving force to reduce the combined greenhouse gas emissions from Norwegian aviation. The company has a leading role in the work on developing and delivering biofuel for aircraft. Every year, Avinor contributes to safe and efficient travel for around 50 million airline passengers. Around half travel to and from Oslo Airport. More than 3,000 employees are responsible for planning, developing and operating airports and air navigation services. Avinor is funded by aviation fees and commercial sales at the airports. NLF - NORWEGIAN AIRSPORT FEDERATION Norges Luftsportforbund (Norwegian Air Sports Federation – established 1909) is the main organization for General Aviation (GA) and air sports in Norway, with a membership of approx. 17,000 and a staff of 15 employees. NLF organizes and promotes activities such as parachute jumping and flying with light aircraft, microlights, sailplanes, hot air balloons, hang gliders, paragliders, speed gliders and model aircraft. Innovation and electrification of light aircraft are key focus areas for NLF. NHO – LUFTFART - FEDERATION OF NORWEGIAN AVIATION INDUSTRIES The Federation of Norwegian Aviation Industries (NHO Luftfart) is an organization that supports aviation industry companies in Norway. The association has over 50 member companies employing over 12.000 people. NHO Luftfart is affiliated to the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO). It organizes companies within the domain of airline businesses, helicopter services, airports, technical services, ground handling and other aviation related businesses. Objective: NHO Luftfart shall strive to develop a stable and healthy regulatory framework, a strong corporate identity and profitability for the aviation industry. WIDERØE Widerøe is the largest regional airline in Scandinavia, with a staff of 3,000 and a turnover of NOK 3.5 billion. The company carries around 2.8 million passengers annually and flies to 46 domestic and international destinations. Widerøe operates more than 450 flights every day and operates to more than twice as many airports in Norway than any other airline. Today its network consists of 60% commercial routes, and 40% PSO routes (Public Services Obligations). Feasibility study by GREEN FUTURE AS 2 INTRODUCTION OF ELECTRIC AVIATION IN NORWAY 22 March 2018 SAS SAS is a Scandinavian based airline with regional and international flights, 120 destinations and close to 30 million passengers yearly. The fleet consist of approximately 155 aircraft whereof 33 are by wet lease. In Norway SAS operates from 15 airports with a staff of 4 200 and a turnover of more than 10 billion kroner. DISCLAIMER Green Future AS takes no responsibility for statements, assumptions, conclusions or other information in this study that may not be correct. All information in this study is based on publicly available sources and interviews with a number of people and companies. Some statements are based on Green Futures' views, expectations or assumptions on future development that may involve known as well as unknown risks, and which may change the future outcome significantly. Feasibility study by GREEN FUTURE AS 3 INTRODUCTION OF ELECTRIC AVIATION IN NORWAY 22 March 2018 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS This study presents how the opportunities for electrification of aviation may contribute to future sustainable and low-emission air transport in Norway. It is a part of Avinor’s ongoing efforts toward the electrification of Norwegian aviation and is a follow-up from a short, initial study on the same subject presented in June 2017. Electrification of aviation is high on the political agenda in Norway. In December 2015, Avinor accepted an invitation from the Norwegian Air Sports Organization (NLF) to participate in a long term project towards exploring the possibilities for electrification of Norwegian aviation. The thematic has later been mentioned in documents from the Norwegian Government. The latest Norwegian National Transport Plan (NTP 2018-2029), released in the summer of 2017, outlines how the Government intends to prioritize resources within the transportation sector over the current decade, from 2018 to 2029. The overall goal of the NTP is to develop "a transport system that is safe, promotes economic growth and contributes to the transition into a low-emission society." As is well-documented worldwide, a high degree of population mobility, enabled largely by efficient transportation that benefits from adequately maintained infrastructure, is an engine for both economic growth and social welfare. At the same time, however, increased use of transportation leads to increased transportation-related emissions of pollutants, including climate-altering greenhouse gases, as well as potential safety issues and local disturbances, such as noise and traffic. Towards its overall goal, and for the first time, the most recent NTP includes an innovative strategy where new technologies and business models are to receive higher priority to speed the country's transition to more efficient, low-emission modes of transportation. It furthermore states that the government supports Avinor and NLF's initiative towards electrification of Norwegian aviation. This message is reiterated in the Ministry of Climate and Environment's White Paper to the Parliament on Norway’s climate strategy towards 2030 (Meld. St. 41 (2016–2017)) and strengthened in the political platform for the new conservative coalition government from January 2018, the latter explicitly tasking Avinor with developing a program for electrification of commercial aviation in Norway. Summary of Key Points More than 20 destinations/routes in the Norwegian short airfield network have distances ranging from 38 – 170 km, all of which can easily be flown by a battery-powered electric aircraft. The first electric aircraft to operate in this network is likely to be configured as a hybrid electric (that is, an electric aircraft with a standard mode of fuel- powered generator as a backup electricity source), but will be capable of being operated via electric power only. For a few destinations, the aircraft can continue to the next airport or return to its origin without charging and still fly using electric power only because the overall distances flown are fairly short. With the flexibility provided by the hybrid electric aircraft approach, the implementation of electric aviation can be made step-by-step, thus reducing the risks of irregularities during the introduction phase. Within a timeframe of 10 – 15 years, battery technology will offer sufficient capacity for pure electric aircraft to accommodate approximately 1-hour flights or more than 500 km. When implemented, this electric transport option would have wide-ranging and immediate impact, considering that most of the flights in the Norwegian short airfield network (initialised as FOT in Norwegian and PSO - Public Service Obligation in English) cover distances of less than 200 km. (Flights in the PSO routes network receive government subsidies to maintain the routes as the passenger numbers are insufficient for commercial operation.) Technology development for electric aircraft is advancing steadily and has broad support in the aviation industry, involving leading manufacturers such as Boeing and Airbus, in addition to major suppliers including Siemens, Rolls Royce, Safran, and a range of new ventures who are leading in many sectors. A number of aircraft are under Feasibility study by GREEN FUTURE AS 4 INTRODUCTION OF ELECTRIC AVIATION IN NORWAY 22 March 2018 development for entry into service by the early 2020s, including from Volocopter, KittyHawk, Airbus, Lilium, Joby for urban vertical take-off, Eviation for regional conventional take-off, and Zunum. Much of the progress in setting the stage for the electrification of aviation directly relates to the rapid development of batteries and electronics pursued by the automotive industry over the last couple decades. The increasing range, lowering costs, and growing customer appeal in the electric automobile sector since the introduction of the first mass-market hybrid electric