Bye approaches 300 electric airplane orders

April 11, 2019 By Thomas A. Horne

George E. Bye, CEO of Bye Aerospace, a Colorado company created to make electric aviation a practical reality, said customers have placed orders for nearly 300 electric airplanes.

The eFlyer family of aircraft aims to be the first FAA-certified all-electric airplanes to serve the flight training and general aviation markets. Photo courtesy of Bye Aerospace.

The two-seat eFlyer 2 (formerly known as the Sun Flyer) launch customer was the Spartan School of Aeronautics, which placed an order for 26 of the 90-kilowatt (115-horsepower) Siemens SP70D-powered airplanes.

Bye announced additional orders at Aero Friedrichshafen—10 eFlyer 2s from ElFly and 60 from OSM Aviation Academy, Norwegian companies that specialize in training airline pilots.

The eFlyer 2 will be certified under 14 CFR Part 23 small-aircraft rules that stipulate a stall speed of no more than 45 knots, two seats, and a single engine, and that limit flights to day- and night-VFR conditions.

First deliveries of the $349,000 eFlyer 2 (the original price was $289,000) are anticipated in 2021. Deliveries of Bye’s eFlyer 4, a four-seat, all-electric design that will be IFR certified, are planned in 2022.

Thomas A. Horne

AOPA Pilot Editor at Large

AOPA Pilot Editor at Large Tom Horne has worked at AOPA since the early 1980s. He began flying in 1975 and has an airline transport pilot and flight instructor certificates. He’s flown everything from ultralights to Gulfstreams and ferried numerous piston airplanes across the Atlantic.

Go to Thomas A. Horne's Profile

Topics: AERO Friedrichshafen, Electric

Bye approaches 300 electric airplane orders

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