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Most of the energy used in commercial flights is just to get the plane up to cruising height. What if an electric drone could help lift an electric passenger planes to cruising height, then detach and return to the airport to recharge.
The plane itself would only need to carry enough energy to maintain cruising height until it's time to land. Plus redundancy in case of delays. But it would still need to carry way less energy than existing planes.
Further to my late night showerthoughts about electric planes;
When I say drone I don't mean the standard quadcopter. I'm imagining something designed specifically for the purpose, with engines and batteries, and wings big enough to allow it to glide safely back to an airport for charging.
The same kind of drone could be sent up in emergencies to support planes that are having engine trouble or running low on charge, and help them land safely at the nearest airport.
An electric plane however could recoup the climbing energy on the way down to land. Jet engines are horribly inefficient at idle, so they waste a lot of fuel on the descent too. An electric plane would not be using much power during descent.
@mike805
> Batteries do not get lighter as they discharge
Exactly. Thus my proposal for a detachable, self-flying battery bank for the initial ascent;
https://mastodon.nzoss.nz/@strypey/114687769929312315
EDIT: If the total energy needed by the plane is significantly lower, it can carry much less weight in batteries.
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