Electra has completed off-runway test flights of its EL-2 Goldfinch eSTOL technology demonstrator aircraft from a grass field near the company’s facility in Manassas, VA.
The aircraft flew a series of takeoffs and landings from a grass area and demonstrated the maximum performance climb-out of 32 degrees that would be used in many military missions. It also required no charging infrastructure as the batteries are charged in-flight by the hybrid propulsion system.
JP Stewart, Electra’s Vice President and General Manager, said; “The Electra eSTOL technologies increase the number of available landing sites by orders of magnitude relative to traditional fixed wing aircraft while providing for higher cruise speeds, lower costs, and lower noise than vertical lift solutions. These first flights from a field demonstrate the beginnings of this strong capability that we will continue to develop.”
In addition to the grass operations, the test campaign included acoustic data collection to validate the low-acoustic capabilities of the eSTOL technologies. The aircraft achieved quiet operations of under 55 decibels at 500 feet overflight, a sound level comparable to human conversation. At typical cruise altitudes, the aircraft will be inaudible over background noise. Later flights will progress to even rougher and more confined areas as the test program continues.
