Join Xavier for a thrilling flight in Switzerland’s SolarStratos project: a solar-electric aircraft designed to fly into the stratosphere. Meet pilot Raphaël, explore the tech, take in stunning Alpine views, and feel the zero-G fun from the cockpit. The future of flight is quieter—and seriously cool!
#Aviation #ElectricAircraft #SolarPower
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👉 This channel was created in collaboration with https://www.youtube.com/@xaviertytelman
0:00 - SolarStratos' Record-Breaking Solar Aircraft
2:46 - European Project and Electric Flight Achievements
5:09 - Charging and Preflight Safety
7:37 - Taxi, Checks, and Electric Takeoff
13:22 - Mountain Flight and Zero-G
20:16 - Scenic Flight and Electric Aviation's Future
27:32 - Returning and Landing the Electric Plane
32:36 - Flight Records and the Future of Electric Aviation
We are now available on Spotify! Listen now https://open.spotify.com/show/6KW2Zo9GU39VZSvv2zIpxM
#Aviation #ElectricAircraft #SolarPower
Subscribe for more incredible adventures!
Comment and tell us what you liked most from the video.
👉 This channel was created in collaboration with https://www.youtube.com/@xaviertytelman
0:00 - SolarStratos' Record-Breaking Solar Aircraft
2:46 - European Project and Electric Flight Achievements
5:09 - Charging and Preflight Safety
7:37 - Taxi, Checks, and Electric Takeoff
13:22 - Mountain Flight and Zero-G
20:16 - Scenic Flight and Electric Aviation's Future
27:32 - Returning and Landing the Electric Plane
32:36 - Flight Records and the Future of Electric Aviation
We are now available on Spotify! Listen now https://open.spotify.com/show/6KW2Zo9GU39VZSvv2zIpxM
Category
🚗
MotorTranscript
00:00Hello and welcome today to Switzerland at Solastratus. Raphael, hello.
00:04Hi, Xavier.
00:05It's just a glider behind your nose.
00:07No, it's an airplane.
00:08It's an airplane.
00:09Electric and solar airplane. That's it, it's the highest crewed electric and solar airplane in history.
00:149,640 meters, almost 32,000 feet, and also the highest electric airplane in history.
00:21And what do you do when you go that high? Do you skydive? No.
00:24You come back down gliding smoothly. At that point, it effectively becomes a glider.
00:27What kind of technology do we have that allows for such results?
00:31Well, we have a plane that's super light, actually. It's really the weight.
00:34And now we're going to improve things even further with the new batteries coming in.
00:37We'll be able to go much higher. The goal is the stratosphere.
00:40And then, of course, it's really the weight and also a plane that has the most efficient aerodynamics possible.
00:45We have a glide ratio of about 34, 35. So for an airplane, that's super high.
00:50So, what proportion of your energy comes from the batteries or from solar power?
00:54Well, it actually depends on what stage of the flight we're in.
00:56And since we use all the available energy from both the batteries and the solar panels to climb,
01:01but then when we descend, we recharge.
01:03But we can almost break even by the time we're back on the ground.
01:06After having the entire descent phase where we need a...
01:09So, how do you recharge? Your propeller acts like a wind turbine, no?
01:12No. So, that was a possibility.
01:14But no, we prefer to stay airborne and recharge with our solar panels.
01:17So, once we reach the maximum altitude where there's no more energy,
01:20we cut everything, we glide back down, and then we recharge using the solar panels.
01:23So, theoretically, you could stay up even longer after nightfall.
01:27When you're very high up, you glide through the night and climb back up a bit.
01:30That's it. That's right. It's more than just a plane designed to fly day and night.
01:33But it's an airplane that could, at noon, when the sun is at its zenith,
01:37if the weather is nice, fly solely thanks to solar energy.
01:41We consume about 4 kilowatts when we are in cruise flight 80 kilometers per hour.
01:48And then the solar panels produce about 6 kilowatts.
01:51What's the surface area of the wings here?
01:53We have 22 square meters of solar panels in total, and the wingspan is 24, 24.8 meters.
01:58And you see, the hangar itself is 25 meters, so everything is truly designed for the plane.
02:02And on top of that, it's a two-seater.
02:04And it's a two-seater. It's the first two-seater solar plane in history.
02:08And what are the next steps? What do we do next?
02:10Next steps are changing the batteries now, improving the aerodynamics a little bit.
02:14We also added, we have a 5G system for telemetry, but now we'll have Starlink on board now.
02:20We tested it. It works great, so we'll be permanently connected.
02:23And then next year, well, the goal is to break 10,000 meters,
02:25to be the first electric and solar airplane to exceed 10,000 meters, so going even higher.
02:30And then you're on oxygen.
02:32So we're already at 30,000 feet. We're already on oxygen at 9,000, 9,600 meters.
02:36Even if I'm blonde, I need a bit of oxygen.
02:38That's it. And then the next step will be to have an improved oxygen system
02:42that delivers oxygen under positive pressure to be able to go even higher,
02:45to get closer to the stratosphere.
02:46I see a dual Swiss and European flag.
02:49There are Europeans involved. It's a project that is both Swiss and European.
02:52We had help from France with Onéra. We have French partners.
02:56The plane was built in Germany, partly in Switzerland, so it's truly a European project.
03:01And here's something we can be really proud of, Xavier.
03:02In fact, the highest flying electric and solar plane is a European plane.
03:07It's not the Americans who made it. It's a twin engine, huh?
03:10Now, on the other hand, you don't need a multi-engine rating.
03:12And even if you have a multi-engine rating, they don't count this as a multi-engine renewal.
03:16Because you only have one propeller,
03:18but we actually have two completely independent propulsion systems.
03:21So two independent electric motors, two motor controllers, two battery management systems.
03:25First of all, when you're flying at 5,000 meters altitude with a glide ratio of 20,
03:30it gives you a little bit of leeway to find a field to land in such a situation.
03:34So we actually have a glide ratio of 32. So when I set the altitude record,
03:37I was up there at flight level 300. And then, well, it was two hours where I basically glided.
03:42Two hours where I glided, so I covered 160 kilometers.
03:46And just as an aside, it was pretty awesome, because when I was reaching almost the maximum altitude,
03:51air traffic control, Swiss control asked me to make a right turn.
03:54I couldn't. That day, there was really a cumulus.
03:56But I don't know if it was a cumulus or a cumulonimbus.
03:58So I made a left turn, and right at that moment, there was a Lufthansa plane, an A320,
04:03that contacted Swiss control, asking them, wait, I have traffic on my TKS.
04:08And actually, it was me, and right there, it was pretty awesome,
04:10because the controller said, yeah, it's fine, we're aware of it, it's a solar plane.
04:13And those guys, they never responded.
04:14And right then, for me, it was quite an incredible moment,
04:16because I was at the same altitude as the airliners in an electric and solar plane.
04:20Now, there aren't any passengers yet, let's be honest.
04:22There's still a ways to go, but we can see that progress is being made.
04:25And the technologies you're developing, do they benefit the environment
04:29and help improve aviation more broadly, especially sustainable aviation?
04:34It's lightweight, we've improved things.
04:35We've been working on this project for 10 years now.
04:37When we first launched this project, there were almost no electric planes.
04:40Today, things are progressing.
04:41Above all, I'd say what we're trying to do, Xavier,
04:43is respond to those who tell us, the extremists, the ideologues,
04:46who tell us that tomorrow, we won't be able to fly anymore.
04:48I don't know if you've seen this, but there are people, notably in France,
04:51who say that flying won't make young people dream anymore,
04:53even though, in my eyes, the most-readed book on Earth is The Little Prince,
04:57which is still the story of an aviator.
05:00And I think that, above all, we must allow,
05:02show the young people of today and tomorrow
05:03that flying won't just be about dreaming,
05:06but that we'll do it without burning fossil fuels,
05:08without CO2 and without noise.
05:09Say, Raphael, why don't we go for a flight in an electric plane?
05:13I think that's the plan. Come on, tomorrow morning, though,
05:15you have a flight in Fossil et Means, Xavier.
05:17We take off tomorrow.
05:18So, you have to open the little hatch there.
05:20Wait.
05:21Exactly.
05:21Then, you just need to open there.
05:24Great.
05:25And you have to stick that inside.
05:30That's it. Great.
05:32Now, then you have to come over here by the charger.
05:35There! It detected it!
05:37And here, you see, you have the little charge button right here.
05:41There, and you're good to go.
05:44Temperature 34 degrees. There you go.
05:46And now it's going to start charging.
05:47And you see here, you've got several levels, right?
05:50So, from 3 amps to 32 amps, we're at 10 amps.
05:53Since nobody's flying after us, right away, well, we're going to charge it slowly to protect its batteries.
05:59That's the charge we'll be flying on.
06:01And, well, that's the good news.
06:03We're at 100 to 99 percent, you see.
06:05Battery.
06:06So, as far as we know, everything is nominal.
06:09Now, we're going to do the Bose flight, and then we'll be good to go.
06:13I'm right behind you.
06:14Let's go.
06:16It starts here.
06:17We have a new circle.
06:21There.
06:23We're good.
06:26The ground and the tire look good, and that's something you have to check.
06:29That's the main thing you have to check on this plane, making sure there are no bubbles here,
06:32you see, in the liquid cooling system.
06:34So, here, we don't have any bubbles.
06:36We're good.
06:38A lot of things to check on an electric plane.
06:42All right, the tire is right here.
06:43It's good.
06:45Here, this is the battery.
06:46We actually have two batteries.
06:48We have two batteries on the pipe pistol.
06:49We can't have them burning.
06:51There, we are going to mount the cameras onto that.
06:56From below, you can clearly see that my camera is securely mounted.
06:59All good.
07:03The tire here, you get the general idea.
07:04Yeah, we tied it up.
07:07All right, good.
07:07Good job.
07:11The blanket.
07:16Now, this is where it's electric.
07:18You always have to be careful.
07:19Really make sure there's nobody around that you're at zero,
07:21because if you run into a problem, it happens right away.
07:23The power...
07:24Great.
07:27Awesome, right?
07:29I'm waiting for the sound of the engine starting up.
07:31Yeah, you'll be waiting a long time.
07:32It's all good.
07:37Let's go.
07:39And that's fine.
07:40It's cool.
07:41I'm going to throw you a little daddy heading for the end of the jet runway.
08:03No, there's no tower.
08:05No, but it'll come in.
08:07Now we're going to have to...
08:07We're going to taxi back up the runway.
08:09And what do we say?
08:10It's Jahan, who's not speaking, and...
08:22That's a good five feet, Dad.
08:23We're going to backtrack runway seven to be safe.
08:28Is it uncontrolled?
08:29Yeah.
08:30It's uncontrolled.
08:41The runway is closed, right?
08:43It's just for us, we're under a TPR, so normally there's no one around.
08:47Romeo Quebec Papa.
08:48Backtracking runway.
08:49Two seven.
08:56There we go.
08:57So, whoa, I'm releasing the brakes.
08:59All good.
09:01Okay, we set.
09:03Switching to ACS.
09:09You see, it's awesome.
09:10Right here, we can see her consumption.
09:12We're at five kilowatts.
09:22So, Xavier, are you ready for your first electric plane experience?
09:26I'm ready, Raphael.
09:27Okay, great.
09:28We're going to do a bit of zero-G.
09:31The advantage with the electric plane is that you can really do zero-G.
09:34You don't run any risk of disturbing.
09:37There are no fluids apart from the coolant, but that's pressurized.
09:40So, it's not an issue.
09:43Plus, we have a G meter that lets us check the quality of our zero-G.
09:57There's a little bump.
09:58We've left runway two seven.
09:59We're on the taxiway, yes.
10:08There we go.
10:09Well, the air is calm, huh?
10:11Yeah.
10:11The weather is perfect.
10:14We're lucky.
10:16I'll just take photos of this for the paperwork, because I do it all later.
10:23You've got all the parameters, you see.
10:24It's interesting to see.
10:25And now we'll do a quick check.
10:29We're checking that we've got full power.
10:33Okay.
10:34We've got full power, 66 kilowatts.
10:36And everything stayed nominal.
10:39Okay, so, checks before take-off.
10:44The battery is good.
10:46Motor checked.
10:47Doors are closed.
10:48Flaps retracted.
10:51Trim neutral.
10:52Trim neutral.
10:55Altimeter cross-checked.
11:031,005 instruments.
11:06Controls are free and consistent.
11:11It's completed.
11:12Parking brakes release.
11:13Parking brake release.
11:14I might be acting a bit like a dad.
11:15We're taxiing to line up on runway.
11:20Don't worry.
11:21We're taxiing to line up on runway 27.
11:24Seven.
11:25One of the surprising things is the engine cutting out at each point.
11:28And you'll see, once we're lined up, the first time it feels super weird, because you think to yourself, I
11:34must have messed something up here.
11:36The approach is clear.
11:37I'm maybe a bit proper lining up runway 27 via Alpha for an immediate take-off.
11:57See, that's what's weird for a pilot.
12:00Engine off, facing the runway.
12:03Lurk.
12:04Everything has stopped spinning.
12:05It's all good for you?
12:06Everything's good on my end.
12:07Okay.
12:09So, wind is calm.
12:10Full power set.
12:11Center line.
12:13Speed is rising.
12:14No, it's right on the edge there.
12:18We're taking off.
12:21Still on the center line.
12:24Norte.
12:25Positive rate.
12:28Climbing back in the amber.
12:30I can't see it's a bit 65 kilos here.
12:32It's good.
12:33We're in the orange.
12:35We're at almost 900 feet per minute, Ingrid.
12:3969.
12:41There we go.
12:44There's always that magical side to take off, right?
12:48And about now, we're flying on electric now.
12:51We're at 60 kilowatts.
12:52We're going to get back into the green.
12:55There.
12:55That's an unexpected amount of power, huh?
12:58It really packs a punch, huh?
12:59It really packs a punch, huh?
13:01Well, electric power.
13:02There we go.
13:03We're back in the green.
13:04There we go.
13:05We've got the speed.
13:07Retracting flaps.
13:08Flaps are up.
13:10Trimming it.
13:12There we go.
13:16Okay, you have control.
13:18I'll contact air traffic control.
13:20Yeah.
13:21I have control.
13:22You have control.
13:23I just service.
13:24You have control.
13:27Are you correcting with the rudder pedals, or what?
13:29Just a tiny bit, yeah.
13:30A tiny bit to the right.
13:31There we go.
13:32A tiny bit more.
13:33Okay.
13:34Okay.
13:34There you go.
13:35Oh, if you keep the ball centered, that's the trick.
13:36Exactly.
13:38And where are we going?
13:40Straight ahead.
13:40Place de la Gévoie.
13:42You see, we're going towards the pre-ops.
13:44Over there, that's Geneva.
13:49Paris.
13:49It's over that way.
13:54Let me enjoy the mountains a bit before heading back to Paris, please.
13:59Okay.
14:08A bit more to the right.
14:11I'm going to turn, then we'll go there next.
14:13Right behind this Legoyer.
14:14It's an incredible place.
14:18Wait.
14:18Step on the ball.
14:19There we go.
14:20Exactly.
14:23We used about 2% of the battery.
14:26It's not fun, because the rudder pedals feel heavy compared with the stick.
14:30The stick feels particularly light.
14:32The stick feels very light, yeah.
14:34And the rudder pedals feel a bit heavier than they do in the glider, you see.
14:38Yeah.
14:41It's really sleek through the air.
14:43I love it.
14:44And this scenery, on top of that, is extraordinary in the mountains.
14:47Fantastic.
14:48Yeah, the light.
14:48Boro.
14:49That's the Moleson.
14:50The peak right over there is the Moleson.
14:52There you go.
14:53And now we're starting to see the gas laws, and you see.
14:55The mountains over there, which are very beautiful, are the gas laws.
15:00Those three little points are called the Troi-Tiselle.
15:02It's a great spot for climbing up in the mountains.
15:06And right over there is Lake Mount Salvens.
15:08We'll see it right after it's an artificial lake.
15:14With a pretty incredible spot, which is the Gruyere airfield,
15:17which is really a place where the foot of the mountains with a grass runway,
15:21it'll be tough for you to spot it, because...
15:23The variometer.
15:24I'm right at 400.
15:25There.
15:25Yeah, that's very good.
15:26The speed is good.
15:28We're 4,000 feet.
15:29We're going to climb nicely, huh?
15:30Yeah.
15:31It's climbing fast.
15:33And the noise for the neighbors is really, really reduced.
15:35Compared to...
15:36It's too bad.
15:37I couldn't let you experience it, because even if you're outside, you can't hear a thing.
15:41And now you're from the outside.
15:42That's where it's the coldest...
15:44More than from the inside, where there's still quite a bit of noise.
15:47It really worked.
15:49I mean, it was very slight, but tomorrow's electric version will be super quiet.
15:56And there you go.
15:57That's Poulle, with the Gruyere airfield right behind it.
16:02And airfield is dangerous.
16:04There are often accidents.
16:05It's a very short grass runway, about 500 meters long.
16:08And Lake Gruyere, which is right there.
16:12And then to make out Lake Geneva over there, you see it's the ocean ahead of us.
16:16And slightly to the right, at one o'clock, that's Geneva.
16:19I'm at 500 feet per minute in newton.
16:21I'm climbing a bit too high.
16:22In any case, the speed is all good, huh?
16:23Okay.
16:24Speed at 80 knots.
16:2689, 89.
16:30Power consumption is 29 kilowatts.
16:33Very good.
16:34Now we're throttled back a little bit.
16:37And you'll see later, we'll set it.
16:39It takes about 20 kilowatts to fly in level flight at 80 knots.
16:44So that's about 30 horsepower to fly at 140 kilometers per hour.
16:49Efficient, huh?
16:50Yeah, it's huge.
16:54There's no other traffic.
16:55No one's talking around us.
16:56It surprises me.
16:57In the morning like this, on a Friday.
17:01Not everyone has Xavier Teitelman's pace, you see, around here.
17:06You can start a slight turn to the left.
17:08Inside, inside, nobody's there.
17:10Yeah, it's clear.
17:16Have a reason you like it or I am.
17:18It's fine, very well.
17:19Okay.
17:21That's all perfect.
17:22Still climbing, 300 feet per minute.
17:24That's looking great.
17:25We'll head up to 5,000 feet to have water below us for our parabolic flight.
17:28We're at 4,005.
17:30We're going to switch to the G meter.
17:35There, wait, that's Lake Guria.
17:37It's beautiful.
17:38You can see it clearly.
17:41You can go straight ahead.
17:48So, as soon as there are charging stations everywhere, which isn't the case right now, you've got one in Goethe,
17:53and that's it.
17:53But as soon as there are charging stations, well, you can fly around trips to Assam.
17:57And we land, we charge, and we take off again.
17:59But for now, that's one of the problems.
18:01Airports have very little electrification, very little electrification.
18:04Once everything is electrified, well, you'll be able to, there you go.
18:07You'll be able to go.
18:37How long before you can take off again?
18:38So, we'll have a big altitude range, and you know there's neither anyone above nor anyone below.
18:44I don't see anything.
18:45Nobody.
18:45Okay.
18:46I'm taking back the controls.
18:47You have the controls.
18:48Ready for the little zero-G parabola?
18:50I'm ready.
18:51Okay.
18:51My control.
18:53So, there's nothing...
19:00Here we go.
19:00We're flying straight and level at 5,500.
19:04So, we're speeding up, going to the VLE.
19:10We're at VLE.
19:11Pulling up into a climb.
19:13Woo-hoo!
19:14Woo-hoo!
19:15Okay, full power.
19:16And pull up.
19:17Keep reaching for it.
19:17Keep reaching.
19:18And we're going to zero-G.
19:20Woo-hoo!
19:20Woo-hoo!
19:22Woo-hoo!
19:26And pull up.
19:28We stayed within the parameters.
19:30That's very good.
19:32Nice.
19:33Plus 2.0.
19:35And did you see how long that lasted?
19:37I think we were like nearly three seconds of zero-G.
19:40Right.
19:41Right.
19:42Right.
19:43Okay.
19:44I've got the controls.
19:45I've got the controls.
19:47And now we're at zero.
19:49Let's do your plan.
19:51We're at 5,000 feet.
19:53So, right now...
19:54Now, if we want to stay in stabilize mode,
19:58we can make a turn.
19:59After that, we're going to check it out a bit.
20:01We're going to head a bit toward the terrain over there.
20:03See, if we now go to about 20...
20:0620, 25, we'll see how it goes.
20:09But here we are.
20:10And did you see the quality of the zero-G?
20:13For a little plane like this, very...
20:15Very stable.
20:16Yeah.
20:18I used to do aerobatic gliding back then on an ASK 21.
20:22Yeah, well, I fly an ASK 21 on a DG 505.
20:30You can go straight ahead.
20:31We're going to climb a bit.
20:32We'll head a little toward the ridge.
20:34The lake over there has dried up.
20:36Right?
20:36It's an artificial lake, you know?
20:38So, there's a dam.
20:38You see the dam is right over there.
20:40It's right down there.
20:41And so, there's...
20:42It's normal at the end of the summer.
20:43Right.
20:43At the end of the summer.
20:44On top of that, it was used for...
20:46Because it was very dry this year, no?
20:48Let's climb a bit.
20:49Yeah.
20:49We're going to climb a bit.
20:50We'll avoid hitting the terrain after all.
20:52Yeah.
20:52You know what?
20:52I can go a bit to the right here.
20:54We're going to go check out that...
20:55We're going to go check out that...
20:57There are some dismantled ski facilities over there.
20:59You see?
21:00We're going to film them.
21:02Yeah.
21:04Exactly.
21:04Good eye.
21:05Exactly.
21:10And look.
21:10We still have 70% battery left.
21:12You see?
21:1370.
21:13That's 70 that works.
21:15Okay.
21:15Yeah, but we're not alone.
21:18Yeah, well, 70 is the real number, just so you know.
21:20The Rafale pilots, they say 70, 90.
21:23That's what?
21:24Because it's 830.
21:2530.
21:26No, that didn't.
21:27That didn't.
21:27No, that's 80.
21:31Ah, that's in Belgium.
21:32It's even better.
21:47There we go.
21:48I love it.
21:52The mountains are beautiful.
21:54Maybe it's not very safe up here.
21:56Upsea, daisy.
21:58There we go.
21:59You forgot you're not supposed to balloon, guys.
22:02No, it's...
22:02On this plane, it's not critical.
22:07Oh!
22:08It's a matter of standards, you know?
22:16Okay, I'm just taking back the controls, yeah, because of the terrain.
22:19My controls.
22:20Yeah, the controls.
22:21My controls.
22:29My controls.
22:31And there you go.
22:32That's the arrival when you're sleeping.
22:33Here we go, guys.
22:34Hello, you're sleeping.
22:55We've got the camera on the right side.
23:08It's all good.
23:09We're heading to Lake Bichetel.
23:10You see, we were right across from it now.
23:11At noon, we were there yesterday.
23:15You really feel the speed when you're close to the ground, unlike when you're...
23:18Yeah.
23:18That's what's great about being close to the terrain.
23:21You base jump too, right?
23:22Yeah.
23:23A sensation of speed.
23:24A bit...
23:25Yeah, that too.
23:26It doesn't get any better than this, does it?
23:28It doesn't get any better.
23:31A few times I jumped down there.
23:33I jumped...
23:33I have 11 solo jumps during my training.
23:36That's good.
23:36Right, so you did the AFF then.
23:38Yeah, but no, I didn't go all the way to 4,000 meters.
23:40I stopped at 10 seconds of free fall.
23:44Actually, only once did I go through a cloud.
23:45Then you get the feeling...
23:47I mean...
23:47Yeah, well, yes.
23:48That's when, for the first time, you get that sensation of speed when you jump.
23:51So, here's what I suggest.
23:52Next time you come over, I'll take you, and we'll go jump out of helicopters over Verbiere.
23:55I don't have it anymore.
23:56I don't have my license anymore, just so you know.
23:58Yeah, but we'll take you.
24:00We'll take you.
24:00We'll take you.
24:01Yeah, we'll take you.
24:01Okay.
24:03With pleasure.
24:05Okay, we'll set that up.
24:17That's from Fribourg, city of Fribourg, you see, with the bridge.
24:23You can see there, it's a magnetic capital.
24:26You can make it out.
24:28Lake Merton.
24:28Behind it, Lake Diel.
24:31And there, we can see Lake Geneva.
24:32You see in the background, you can see Lake Geneva.
24:34And the mountains behind those mountains there, bordering the lake.
24:37That's France.
24:38But they have...
24:39There you go.
24:40That's it.
24:41And there you are.
24:42You're here.
24:42I cut everything off.
24:45Zero kilowatts, guys.
24:46Zero.
24:47We are a glider.
24:47We are a glider, exactly.
24:49And we are still at 5,000 feet.
24:50So, right now, we have consumed the equivalent of not even a liter of gas so far.
24:54An equivalent.
24:55It is incredible.
24:56There you go.
24:56Knowing that we've already gotten through the most energy-intensive part, which is takeoff,
24:59you know, and...
25:04Since we didn't just fly level, we climbed...
25:06We did a parabolic arc.
25:07So, on top of that, we didn't do the most economical flight.
25:10No.
25:11We're running on batteries from, I don't know, the 2010s.
25:15More like 2020, actually.
25:172020.
25:182020.
25:19Yeah.
25:19Is it evolving a lot?
25:20Is it improving?
25:22Well, they got a little better until recently.
25:25And right now, we're seeing testing batteries with watt-hours per kilo, so three times denser
25:32than what we have here.
25:34So, that will change everything.
25:35We see the tech hitting the market now, and I'd say within three to five years, by the time
25:39it gets certified, we'll have two or four-seat electric planes capable of flying for two
25:43hours.
25:44Wow.
25:45Because right now, two to four seats is what I asked for, for this one.
25:49Yeah, yeah.
25:50Yeah.
25:50That, I think, within three to five years, it'll be possible.
25:53So, electric planes like Aurora, Aero, Earth, etc., it's not bullshit.
25:58It's going to happen by 2032.
26:002035, you really think we can put it off?
26:02I'm sure we'll get there someday.
26:03Yeah.
26:04Right.
26:04Now, the only question is, it's when and who.
26:06Has Solar Tratos contributed anything to electric aviation?
26:09Did you validate anything that later proved useful for other electric aircraft?
26:13Well, there's one thing we were able to validate, that we were able to change in the regulations,
26:17and that's safety.
26:18In fact, on the Velas' predecessor, and for us, if the system detected something like
26:23a battery overheating, it would shut down the entire system.
26:26It cut our power.
26:28And we realized that it's great for protecting the aircraft, but if you need to get out of
26:33that situation, it's good to be able to override that alert.
26:36So, basically, we established a rule that is now part of the regulations, which means
26:41cutting the power, like, now, if we have an issue, the system cuts out, we cut the power
26:46idle, and put it back on.
26:48And right then, there's no more protection, but we can select the planes.
26:50You go to zero, you're good to go.
26:52Exactly.
26:52Now, after that, you don't have any protection, you know?
26:54So, there's some of your work in all electric planes.
26:56That might be a bit too pretentious, but, well, the truth is, we have modestly contributed
27:01to making electric aviation just a bit, a bit better.
27:05That's the principle of being an explorer?
27:07Yeah, discovering, exploring, indeed.
27:17In control of the aviation, I just hope they'll add three more centimeters of headroom.
27:21Yeah, yeah, there's just enough room.
27:24Yeah, well.
27:25I'm not sitting completely upright.
27:32Well, then, we're going to join the downwind leg.
27:34You see Cree-Cree, the Cree-Cree.
27:36Yes, yeah, I remember, with a guy who set records for an electric airplane, there was
27:41an electric Cree-Cree.
27:42I can't recall his name.
27:45He's in the defense sector?
27:47We had invited, we hosted an event.
27:49We had invited, uh...
27:51He flies a Fugamagister.
27:52Exactly, that's what he does.
27:54Yeah, I can't remember his name.
27:55My mind's gone blank.
27:56I flew with him in the back of his Fugamagister.
27:58Okay, he's a nice guy.
27:59He's incredible.
28:00Excellent.
28:02Hjogs.
28:03That's it, Hjogs, exactly.
28:06Soft titling.
28:14It feels so soft, so nice, it's cool.
28:19It might be good.
28:20Well, Daddy, let's go back to your gentle touch.
28:22Runway 7, yes.
28:28Good, your Daddy, Runway 7.
28:31Good, and I confirmed your Daddy.
28:35If she's checking, she's right there.
28:44To be honest, I still don't see the runway.
28:46That's normal.
28:47Right, we agree on that.
28:49It's normal.
28:50It's hard to see.
28:50Well, Preston, now we're going to do a little exercise.
28:53Xavier, I'll let you take us back to the runway.
28:55So wait, could you give me a general idea of the route?
28:58Oh, so it's somewhere over there.
29:00Not quite, no.
29:02It's in the back.
29:03It's not the back.
29:04We're in the back.
29:05Well, hold on.
29:08On the left.
29:09Yeah.
29:10It's on the left, yeah.
29:11It's on the left.
29:12But it's very hard to...
29:17See.
29:18Xavier, wait a second.
29:18Because people are going to think I'm an idiot,
29:20but I'm still going to show you this view.
29:23It's not a grass runway.
29:25It could be a grass runway, no?
29:26But you really only spot it at the last moment.
29:30I don't see it.
29:31Still, I suspect, based on the village,
29:32that it's right there in the middle, right there.
29:38Yes.
29:39Look, there are only forests.
29:41It's over there.
29:42No?
29:42Still nothing.
29:45No, we're following the river, you see?
29:47That's the river right there.
29:48It's quite beautiful, isn't it?
29:50It's a little bad.
29:51We're down below.
29:51It's only seven, I think.
29:55It's an aircraft with a really high glide ratio, you know?
29:59So it glides very well.
30:01So you really have to come in.
30:03Not too high, otherwise you have to do a side slip.
30:09So we're going to put down a notch of flaps.
30:11And now we can see it pretty well.
30:15One notch of flaps.
30:16Okay.
30:17Approach.
30:18We only have one HNO light.
30:19We've got everything dimmed.
30:20We're over 50 on the battery, so we're good.
30:23If we need to go around, we'll have all the power we need.
30:27My God.
30:27There it is.
30:28You see it.
30:29Yeah.
30:30But...
30:31It's true that if you don't know, this one's a bit tricky.
30:40Here, let's put it on the second notch.
30:42All the flaps are out.
30:44All the flaps are out.
30:47It was a little daddy.
30:48We had...
30:53We have the paper that is clearly visible.
30:56You could do night flights here.
30:58It's where I came once.
31:01It has exceptional visibility.
31:03What I really like here with the plane, you see, is that we have...
31:06The runway is a bit elevated.
31:07And I think it feels a bit like an aircraft carrier.
31:10You know, it's my personal aircraft carrier.
31:12It's all good.
31:31We shouldn't forget, we've got the camera behind us, so let's not pull back too hard.
31:39Oh, it's looking good.
31:41Everything is nominal.
31:43We're niching.
31:44We'll go around full power and we'll retract the flaps.
32:04That's a flare.
32:22I'll give you a 9 out of 10 for your flare.
32:25Careful.
32:26It was really, really good.
32:27It was nice, yeah.
32:28Maybe not a 9 out of 10, but at least an 8, let's say.
32:34If you had been at the controls, I would have flared higher.
32:36Okay, thank you.
32:37Awesome, it's great.
32:39Cool to have taken you on this first flight in an electric plane.
32:42With great pleasure.
32:43A privilege for me.
32:44An honor.
32:45And, well, with someone I consider a giant in aviation, no less.
32:48It's not every day that this happens after all.
32:51You're the pioneer, right?
32:52You've explored more.
32:53I do it.
32:55I share it.
32:57There are a lot of you.
33:01You can follow Raphael on his social media, right?
33:05He's also gathered several hundred thousand followers.
33:08That's still a big fan community.
33:11Above all, follow our adventures in a solar plane.
33:15It's cool.
33:16What are the next steps for everyone?
33:18So now?
33:19Now it's about changing the batteries so that we can climb up to over 10,000 meters next year.
33:2410,000 meters altitude in a solar plane.
33:26That's still incredible.
33:28And electric, right?
33:28It's tied to an electric record.
33:30What firsts and records have you got?
33:32You have a list as long as my arm.
33:34We did the first parachute jump from an electric solar plane.
33:37So the first skydive from a solar power plane.
33:41Then we took Sherardine Fasnat to do her first jump.
33:44And now we have the absolute record in an electric plane, 9,640 meters.
33:50And the absolute record in a plane, in a solar plane.
33:53And the maximum altitude gain, 9,158.
33:56Excellent.
33:57Excellent.
33:57It's incredible.
33:58There we go.
33:59Brilliant.
33:59My friend.
34:02Solar aviation, long live electric aviation, electric.
34:04And long live everything electric in general.
34:06You see there.
34:0751%.
34:08We've used up half of our capacity.
34:1120 minutes of flight.
34:13And we've used about half.
34:17Oh, I'll flight.
34:18Where do you see that, my friend?
34:19Here.
34:20Three and time.
34:22Five minutes.
34:24Now that's super important to see.
34:25In electric aviation, it's super dangerous.
34:27If the power is on, you might not even notice.
34:29That's it.
34:29That's dangerous.
34:31Because you don't have an engine running.
34:32You won't see the danger.
34:34The guy comes over.
34:35He's like, yeah.
34:36Then suddenly everything goes black.
34:37You see.
34:37Imagine.
34:38It's like this.
34:38The guy walks up here.
34:40You, with your hand, you do this.
34:41Yeah.
34:41There's everything.
34:42And it goes off right away.
34:43And then someone's dead.
34:45So that's what you need to understand about electric aviation.
34:47It's inert, actually.
34:48But you always have to really think about safety.
34:51Like right now, I can do whatever I want.
34:53There's no risk anymore.
34:54That's really crucial.
34:58No.
34:59All the same.
35:00Know that one day, you'll be flying electric.
35:02A few years ago, people laughed at those who claimed it was going to happen.
35:06I've done research on the subject.
35:07Raphael is a pioneer who's helping make that a reality.
35:10But you'll see in a few years what he's validating right now.
35:13High-density batteries, swap systems, and so on.
35:16The battery management systems.
35:18I don't know what it's called in French.
35:19BMS management system.
35:20BMS.
35:21Yeah.
35:21I'm trying to find the French word.
35:23That is the key that will push the boundaries.
35:26There were lots of projects that were delayed by the arrival of high-density batteries.
35:30So there are big projects which were talked about a lot that ended up disappearing.
35:36But now, with batteries finally reaching the required level,
35:40come on, one-hour commercial flights by 2040,
35:44carrying several dozen passengers, isn't crazy?
35:47And a one-hour flight that covers half of the world's air routes,
35:49which are under an hour.
35:51And if you look at Parisians,
35:52we go to Switzerland,
35:54to England,
35:55to Alsace,
35:56to the south of,
35:58right,
35:59to the south of France.
36:00That really is the future.
36:02So, rest assured that you'll be flying zero carbon,
36:04and there are plenty of countries where
36:06stop cutting highways through virgin forests.
36:09In a few years,
36:10you'll be flying electric.
36:11Yeah,
36:12and also places where they don't necessarily,
36:14for example,
36:14islands,
36:15Cape Verde,
36:15the Cape Verde archipelago,
36:16they have to fly,
36:18but it's only 50 kilometers between each island.
36:20And there's truly enormous potential for them to decarbonize,
36:24fly on electric power,
36:25solar energy,
36:26and they'd be energy independent too,
36:28meaning they wouldn't need to import oil.
36:30So,
36:30there are truly incredible things going to happen in the next 10 years.
36:33And then new generation batteries,
36:35they aren't batteries that rely on heavy chemical compounds.
36:37They're solid state,
36:38dry batteries with carbon nanotubes,
36:40that sort of thing.
36:40So, similarly,
36:41even that pollutes less and less.
36:43And that's the breakthrough.
36:44It's super safe.
36:45It doesn't catch fire,
36:46which honestly is pretty great.
36:47Hardly ever.
36:48Hardly ever.
36:48Much less.
36:49Much less.
36:50This feels really good.
36:51My friend,
36:52come on.
36:53High five.
36:53We hope you liked it.
36:54And we'll see you very soon.