Air New Zealand and ATR investigating hybrid aircraft

Air New Zealand and ATR have signed an agreement to investigate hybrid propulsion systems for regional aircraft.

The agreement will see Air New Zealand and ATR investigate the feasibility of developing and operating hybrid powered aircraft in the future. Key factors that will be looked into include airport infrastructure, reliability, maintenance and ground and flight operations.

With hybrid aircraft being the next big step for aviation, its important for airlines to take a look at what it has to offer, especially for aircraft that operate light, regional routes.

Chief Executive of Air New Zealand, Christopher Luxon, states he expects hybrid aircraft to enter the market in the next decade. He added that the airline would consider hybrid aircraft as viable option for their regional and domestic fleet if expectations and performance could be met.

40% of Air New Zealand’s domestic emissions come from their regional aircraft so minimizing that figure would really help the airline achieve carbon neutral growth from 2020.

Both ATR and Air New Zealand have expressed their enthusiasm towards the project and will continue to update the world as they slowly step closer to a new milestone in commercial aviation.