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  • eGenius electric plane takes flight with Airbus backing

    by 
    Christopher Trout
    Christopher Trout
    06.01.2011

    It's been mere months since we introduced you to Deutschland's PC-Aero Elektra One, and now the Germans are at it again with the maiden flight of a new electric flying machine: eGenius. The aircraft successfully completed a 20-minute flight on May 26th, followed by a two-and-a-half hour trip on Sunday. Where the Elektra one boasted cruising speeds of 160 km/h (about 99 MPH), eGenius is capable of hitting 235 km/h (146 MPH) for up to 400 kilometers (248.5 miles). It sports a 60-kilowatt motor, weighs 850 kilograms (1,874 pounds), and has some big backing from the likes of Airbus. Considering its relatively limited range and equally limited capacity -- it fits two humans with a combined weight of 397 pounds -- we have a feeling it'll be a bit before we're popping pretzels on one of these bad boys.