Heart Aerospace unveils ES-30, confirms Air Canada and Saab as shareholders
Heart Aerospace has confirmed Air Canada and Saab as new minority shareholders, as well as a number of design updates to its aircraft design.
Air Canada and Saab have each invested $5m in Heart Aerospace. In addition to its investment, Air Canada has also placed a purchase order for 30 ES-30 aircraft.
The new airplane design, the ES-30, has a capacity of 30 passengers and it replaces the firm’s earlier 19-seat design, the ES-19.
Anders Forslund, founder and CEO of Heart Aerospace said: “Growing up in Sweden, Saab is synonymous with aerospace, and our partnership will not only support our programme, but help us to become a part of the proud Swedish aerospace heritage. Air Canada is a strategically important partner with one of the world’s largest networks operated by regional turboprops, and as a progressive, future leaning company.”
The ES-30 has a three-abreast flat-floor cabin seating and features galley and lavatory. Cabin stowage and overhead bins add to the external baggage and cargo compartment.
The airplane will also include a reserve-hybrid configuration, consisting of two turbo generators powered by sustainable aviation fuel. The reserve-hybrid system is installed to secure reserve energy requirements without cannibalising battery range.
Michael Rousseau, president and chief executive, Air Canada said: “Air Canada is very pleased to partner with Heart Aerospace on the development of this revolutionary aircraft. We have been working hard with much success to reduce our footprint, but we know that meeting our net-zero emissions goals will require new technology such as the ES-30. We have every confidence that the team at Heart Aerospace has the expertise to deliver on the ES-30’s promise of a cleaner and greener aviation future.”
This gives the airplane a fully electric range of 200km, an extended range of 400km with 30 passengers, and flexibility to fly up to 800km with 25 passengers.
Forslund added: “The ES-30 is an electric airplane that the industry can actually use. We have designed a cost efficient airplane that allows airlines to deliver good service on a wide range of routes.”
Previous orders for Heart Aerospace’s ES-19 electric airplane, placed by United Airlines and Mesa Air Group for a total of 200 electric aircraft, are reconfirmed for the updated ES-30 design.
Micael Johansson, Saab, president and CEO said: “This underlines our commitment to innovative technology and solutions for sustainable aviation. Heart is a pioneer within commercial electric aviation and we look forward to contributing to the future of aviation with our experience of developing solutions at the forefront of technology.”
In addition to those commitments, many of the ES-19 letters of intent (LOI) holders have already updated their respective letters to reflect the ES-30. In total, Heart Aerospace has LOIs for 96 ES-30s.
The ES-30 is expected to enter into service in 2028.
