EVERETT — One of North America’s largest commercial seaplane carriers agreed Monday to buy 50 electric engines from Everett manufacturer magniX.
Harbour Air, which operates up to 300 daily West Coast flights, signed a letter of intent to purchase 50 magni650 electric motors from magniX, which designs and builds electric motors to power aircraft at facilities near Paine Field. The airline is based in Richmond, British Columbia.
A magniX magni650 electric propulsion unit for aircraft. (Photo provided by magniX)
“The agreement is a milestone in electric aviation and a significant next step in the industry-leading partnership between magniX and Harbour Air,” the two companies said in a statement.
The motors will be used to electrify Harbour Air’s existing aircraft fleet.
“We are excited to accelerate the adoption of electric aviation technology and further our journey towards a sustainable future” Bert van der Stege, the CEO of Harbour Air, said in a statement. “The agreement with magniX underscores our commitment to revolutionize commercial aviation with electric propulsion and to pave the way for cleaner, quieter, and more efficient air travel.”
Harbour Air plans to retrofit the first plane, a De Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, in 2026.
“Electrifying Harbour Air’s fleet with magniX’s engines sets us on a course to define the future of regional flight,” Riona Armesmith, magniX’s chief technology officer, said in a statement.
This isn’t the first time the two companies have collaborated.
In December 2019, they made history when the eBeaver, a Harbour Air De Havilland DHC-2 Beaver retrofitted with a magniX electric engine, became the world’s first fully electric commercial aircraft to take flight, the statement said.
To date, the prototype eBeaver has flown 78 flights in preparation for the certification of the aircraft.
“The many flights that the eBeaver has now completed with magniX’s technology demonstrate that the electric age of aviation is here and bringing it to the marketplace is growing rapidly closer,” Armesmith said. “As we mark Earth Day, we recognize the urgency of solutions such as this in answering the climate challenge.”
The Everett company may be best known for its partnership with Eviation Aircraft, a company with offices and engineering facilities near Arlington Municipal Airport. The two companies are subsidiaries of the Clermont Group, a private investment firm based in Singapore. Both Eviation and magniX relocated to Snohomish County in 2020.
Together, they designed and built a fully electric, nine-seat airplane that completed its first test flight in September 2022. Known as Alice, the plane is specially designed around the magniX electric propulsion system.
Alice produces no carbon emissions and costs significantly less to operate per flight hour than light jets or high-end turboprops, Eviation has said.
Motors from magniX also provide the power for hydrogen-electric aircraft, including Universal Hydrogen’s retrofitted De Havilland Dash 8.
Electric and hydrogen-electric aircraft are expected to play a vital role in supporting commercial air travel, particularly shorter, commuter flights of under 500 miles.
Aviation is responsible for 9% of transportation emissions in the United States and 3% of the nation’s greenhouse gas production, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. All-electric and hybrid aircraft could help reduce the environmental impact.
In 2021, magniX received a $74 million grant from NASA to advance electric aircraft propulsion technology for commercial airline use.
Janice Podsada; jpodsada@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3097; Twitter: @JanicePods
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