Electric aircraft: Taking off pragmatically

Castles in the air have already been built – and torn down – in this industry. Companies developing small battery-powered aircraft are now placing greater emphasis on pragmatism and feasibility in order to bring passengers into the air on regional routes across Europe.

By Michael Neißendorfer

When air taxi developer Lilium slipped into insolvency, it left behind more in Oberpfaffenhofen than just a symbol of the limits of German aviation ambitions: modern battery and testing infrastructure, manufacturing facilities, development expertise – and the question of who might still be able to make use of them. One of the beneficiaries is Vaeridion, founded in 2021. The Munich-based start-up is developing the "Microliner", a battery-electric regional aircraft designed to carry nine passengers and two pilots.

Unlike Lilium, Vaeridion is not pursuing a futuristic vertical takeoff and landing air taxi (eVTOL) – essentially a large passenger drone. Instead, the company is relying on a conservative concept featuring a conventional aircraft layout, takeoffs and landings on standard runways, combined with a fully electric propulsion system. “Our approach is deliberately based on pragmatism and feasibility,” the company explained in response to an inquiry. It is developing “an aircraft for practical regional applications that can be operated in a conventional manner and make use of existing infrastructure.”

The "Microliner" is therefore not intended to shift urban individual transportation into the air. Instead, it is designed to serve a clearly defined market segment: short regional routes of up to approximately 400 kilometers, where conventional fuel-powered propeller aircraft are often too expensive and inefficient. The "Microliner" is thus aimed less at major airports and more at the roughly 2,300 smaller regional airports across Europe that have runways too short or passenger volumes too low for conventional jets. This includes destinations such as the islands of Greece.

At the heart of the concept is the battery architecture. Unlike many other electric aircraft projects, the batteries are not housed in the fuselage but in the wings, leaving more space in the cabin. The long, slender wing geometry is reminiscent of gliders – an indication that Vaeridion places a strong emphasis on efficiency. “We develop our battery technology largely in-house,” the company further explains. This includes the battery management system, thermal management, system architecture, and the safety-critical integration of the battery system into the aircraft. The battery packs are designed so that “individual modules can be installed, maintained, or replaced efficiently.” Future generations of battery cells – allowing the aircraft to benefit from advances in battery technology, for example – are intended to be integrated without major effort.

Presentation of the Velis Electro electric aircraft

The Velis Electro, manufactured by the Slovenian company Pipistrel, became the first electric aircraft to receive certification from the EASA in 2020.

| Pipistrel

The battery cells themselves are currently supplied by Canadian specialist Molicel. At the new production center in Oberpfaffenhofen, up to 400 battery packs per year are expected to be manufactured. Since each "Microliner" requires 60 of these modules, the initial production capacity will be sufficient for just over six aircraft per year – enough for the first test programs and customer deliveries. A recent milestone was the opening of the battery production and testing facility at Oberpfaffenhofen Airfield, located about half an hour west of Munich by car. It is here that the "Microliner" is expected to take off for the first time in just over two years.

Vaeridion estimates the unit price of its electric aircraft at around €5 million, which is approximately 20 to 30 percent higher than the price of comparable conventional light aircraft. The economic advantage is expected to come – not unlike with electric cars and electric trucks – not from the purchase price, but from operating costs. “The 'Microliner' was specifically designed with low operating costs, high energy efficiency, and minimal maintenance requirements in mind,” the company states.

Electric propulsion systems have significantly fewer moving parts than conventional engines, electricity is less expensive than fossil fuel, and maintenance costs are also substantially lower. Whether this will be sufficient ultimately depends on factors such as battery lifespan, the cost of charging infrastructure, and aircraft scheduling in airline operations. That is where it will be determined whether the business model succeeds.

Vaeridion is taking a pragmatic approach financially as well. At the end of 2024, the company completed a €14 million funding round. Since then, additional discussions with investors have been underway. “Vaeridion pursues a capital-efficient development approach,” the company emphasizes. Compared with some of the highly capital-intensive eVTOL programs – Lilium alone burned through around €1.5 billion – the approach appears considerably more restrained.

Vaeridion is not alone internationally. The Pipistrel Velis Electro from Slovenian manufacturer Pipistrel became the first electric aircraft to receive type certification from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency in 2020. However, it is designed for only two occupants and is primarily used as a training aircraft. In the United States, Eviation Aircraft developed "Alice", a battery-electric commuter aircraft in a similar size category. Following its maiden flight in 2022, however, the company was forced to lay off the majority of its workforce nearly three years later. In Europe, Heart Aerospace is pursuing a hybrid-electric approach with the "ES-30", which is designed to carry 30 passengers. The aircraft is expected to achieve a range of 200 kilometers in fully electric mode and up to 400 kilometers in hybrid mode. Test flights are planned for 2026, with deliveries expected no earlier than 2028.

Vaeridion employs around 70 people from more than 20 nations, who together bring more than 300 years of aviation experience. In addition, the company maintains partnerships with the Technical University of Munich, GKN Aerospace, Bosch Engineering, and Bauhaus Luftfahrt. CEO Ivor van Dartel is a trained aircraft engineer with a background at Airbus and worked on electric aircraft as a student in Delft.

Despite all its expertise and pragmatism, Vaeridion remains a high-risk venture. Aircraft development is expensive, certification processes can take longer than planned, and battery technology is advancing more slowly than many start-ups had hoped. The Munich-based company’s strength lies in the fact that Vaeridion is not promising a revolution in air transportation. Instead, it is offering a niche product for a narrowly defined market. Whether that will be enough to succeed remains to be seen when the Microliner actually takes to the skies.

Prospects for battery-powered flight

Physics places tight limits on electric aviation. The central challenge is energy density: today’s lithium-ion batteries store around 300 watt-hours per kilogram, whereas kerosene provides approximately 12,000 watt-hours per kilogram. As a result, the range of electric aircraft is expected to remain limited to roughly 300 to 500 kilometers for the foreseeable future.

On the positive side, electric propulsion offers several advantages. Electric motors achieve efficiencies of more than 95 percent (compared with only around 30 percent for combustion engines), require virtually no maintenance, produce no nitrogen oxide emissions, and generate significantly less noise. For regional short-haul routes currently served by expensive turboprop aircraft, electric propulsion is both economically and environmentally attractive.

Future solid-state batteries could increase energy density to 500 to 700 watt-hours per kilogram – a leap that would significantly extend the range of electric regional aircraft. Until then, the economically viable niche for electric aviation lies in short-haul operations with relatively small passenger numbers – precisely the market segment targeted by the "Microliner".

The manufacturer Heart Aerospace states that its ES-30 battery system will enable a fully electric range of up to 200 kilometers by the end of the 2020s.

| Heart Aerospace