eFlyer 2 Electric Aircraft

eFlyer 2 is a two-seat, all-electric, low-wing monoplane being developed by Bye Aerospace. Credit: Bye Aerospace.

The aircraft made its first flight in April 2018. Credit: Bye Aerospace.

The aircraft is offered in two variants namely eFlyer 2 and eFlyer 4. Credit: Bye Aerospace.

Being developed by Bye Aerospace, eFlyer 2 (previously known as Sun Flyer 2) is a twin-seat, all-electric aircraft intended for pilot training missions.

The aircraft is offered in two variants, eFlyer and eFlyer 4, which is a four-seat version.

The prototype of eFlyer 2 aircraft completed its maiden flight at Centennial Airport (KAPA), located south of Denver, Colorado, US, in April 2018. The aircraft’s flight characteristics such as speed, altitude and endurance were assessed during the flight test.

The Sun Flyer 2 was rebranded as eFlyer 2 in April 2019 and Bye Aerospace commenced flight tests of aircraft with a new Siemens motor in July 2019.

The aircraft is expected to receive Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification in 2020.

Orders and deliveries

Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology placed an order for 20 eFlyer 2 aircraft in 2016.

BlackBird placed an order for the first 100 commercial four-seat eFlyer 4 and ten eFlyer 2 aircraft, while OSM Aviation Group also placed an order for 60 eFlyer 2 aircraft in May 2019.

Bye Aerospace received orders for 298 eFlyer aircraft from unidentified customers as of May 2019.

eFlyer 2 aircraft design and features

The eFlyer 2 incorporates a cantilever low-wing design. The fuselage, made of composite materials, is fitted with a fixed tricycle landing gear.

The aircraft offers longer operating life and is integrated with a ballistic parachute recovery system.

The two-seater variant has a wingspan of 11.58m, wing area of 129ft² (12m²), cabin width of 1.16m and glide ratio of 18.5. It has an empty weight of 1,460lb (662 kg), while the gross weight of the aircraft is 1,900lb (862kg).

The operating cost of the eFlyer 2 is $14 an hour, which is significantly lower compared to Cessna 172’s $88.31 an hour.

Cockpit and avionics

The aircraft features an open cockpit enclosed by a bubble canopy. The onboard avionics suite is provided by Avidyne Corporation. The easy-to-fly aircraft is installed with a next-generation customised instrument panel.

An iPad is installed in the cockpit to display the characteristics of motor, battery and aircraft systems. The Sidekick system tracks the engine, flight time, physical location and altitude of the aircraft.

The real-time information of the engine, flight time, location and altitude of the aircraft can be tracked by the Sidekick system supplied by Redbird Flight Simulations.

Engine and performance of the all-electric training aircraft

The FAR 23-certified eFlyer 2 is equipped with the new 90kW Siemens SP70D electric motor powered by six lithium-ion batteries.

The control unit onboard the aircraft enables the optimal use of energy stored in the batteries to control the engine performance.

The maximum rate of climb of the aircraft is 1,150fpm, while the normal speed varies between 55k and 120k. The aircraft has a flight endurance of 3.5 hours.

EP Systems supplied the energy storage system, battery modules, power distribution unit and battery management unit for the prototype aircraft.

eFlyer 4 variant details

The operating cost of the four-seat eFlyer 4 is $19.80 an hour, compared to Cessna 182’s $122 an hour.

The variant has a wingspan of 38ft (11.58m), wing area of 129ft² (12m²) and gross weight of 2,700lb. It has a cabin width of 46in (1.16m) and a glide ratio of 18.7. The aircraft is powered by an electric propulsion system with a rated power of 105kW.

The maximum rate of climb of the variant is 1,250fpm, while the normal speed is between 55k and 120k. The flight endurance is four hours.