AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2024 - 18

PROFICIENT PILOT
Watts up
Flying the Pipistrel Velis Electro
BY BARRY SCHIFF / AOPA Foundation Legacy Society chairman
ONE OF MY favorite aviation activities involves flying as many
different types of aircraft as possible. Each one educates and
challenges me in a different way. I recently added number 364 to
my list of types flown by checking out in the Slovenian Pipistrel
Velis Electro, the world's first certified electric airplane. The one
I flew is a rental aircraft at Proteus, a flight school at Santa Monica
Airport (SMO) in Southern California.
My instructor, Luke Ferrene, pointed out that preflighting
the two-seat trainer is different than preflighting a combustion
airplane. Because the powerplant-a 57.6 kilowatt (77 horsepower)
electric motor-has no compression, you can spin the propeller
with a fingertip. It feels weird.
You wouldn't know by looking at it, but the Velis Electro is a
multiengine airplane. Well, sort of. The airplane has two lithium
batteries that supply power, one in front of the cockpit and the
other behind to provide the desired center of gravity. Speaking of
CG, because there is no fuel to burn and no baggage compartment,
the airplane is always in balance and gross weight obviously never
changes in flight.
If one battery fails, however, the airplane can still be flown
on the other, albeit with reduced performance and endurance.
The good news is that you wouldn't have to shove a rudder pedal
to maintain heading as is required when an engine fails on a
conventional twin. Thankfully, the FAA does not require Velis
Electro pilots to have a multiengine rating. One wonders, though,
if a " single motor land " rating will eventually be required.
A more serious emergency would be a battery or motor fire,
which is why the batteries and motor are liquid cooled with a
50-50 mixture of water and glycol. Further, the coolant is aircooled,
much like that of a P-51 Mustang, but that's where the
similarity ends.
Starting the Electro is simple, a little more complicated than
flicking on a ceiling fan and just as quiet. There is no runup,
of course, so all items on the before-takeoff checklist can be
accomplished while still parked.
The Velis Electro's power gauges explain how the airplane is
operated. The most important one is the state-of-charge gauge.
It is loosely analogous to a fuel gauge and indicates how much
charge the batteries have remaining as the flight progresses. If the
batteries are fully charged, maximum flight endurance is about 50
minutes plus a 10-minute reserve. With so little endurance, the
18
AOPA PILOT / December 2024
airplane can be used for little more than practicing maneuvers
near the airport. Cross-country flights are obviously impossible.
If you do land at another airport, though, be sure that a battery
charger is available there. Charging can take up to two hours.
Instrument and night flying are prohibited.
Takeoff is not allowed unless the batteries have at least a
50-percent charge, and it is recommended that you are in the
vicinity of an airport when the batteries have less than a 30-percent
charge remaining. A go-around should not be attempted with less
than a 15-percent charge.
The power gauge indicates battery output in kilowatts, and
the tachometer is self-explanatory. A digital indicator shows flight
time remaining, and this is based on current power output.
As expected, the airplane is relatively quiet and smooth,
although I did miss the sound and feel of pounding pistons. The
Velis Electro, however, is not quite as quiet as I had expected
because of propeller noise. It does get very quiet, of course, with
the throttle-or rheostat-fully retarded. When the propeller is
windmilling, the motor becomes a generator and charges the
batteries, although not much and obviously not for long.
The 90-knot airplane has a glide ratio of 15:1, which is much better
than most lightplanes, so getting down during a 60-knot approach
to landing requires the use of flaps-which are actually flaperons,
combining the functions of flaps and ailerons. After landing, I realized
that very little trim change had been needed throughout the flight.
One would expect an airplane that doesn't use avgas to
be economical and rent for less than one that does. Proteus,
however, charges the same for the Velis Electro as it does for a
Cessna 152. One reason might be that it costs $30 to charge the
batteries-in California.
It is easy to question the practical value of an airplane with
such limited performance, range, and endurance (unless it
comes equipped with a really long extension cord). The answer
is reminiscent of when Benjamin Franklin was in Paris in 1783
and witnessed the world's first manned flight in a hot-air balloon.
A fellow observer asked
him skeptically, " But what's
the use of the thing? " Franklin
replied wisely, " What's the use
of a newborn baby? "
www.BarrySchiff.com
BARRY SCHIFF has
flown 364 different types
of aircraft, his most recent
being the electric-powered
Pipistrel Velis Electro.
http://www.BarrySchiff.com
AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2024

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