Shocking cost behind world’s largest electric plane’s 27-minute flight
Heart Aerospace is flying high after successfully completing a flight of the world's largest electric plane.
Better yet, it apparently pulled off the impressive feat of this 27-minute journey for a surprising amount of money.
2026 has been a particularly rocky one for the world of plane news, with the likes of the deadly Air Canada Express Flight 8646 crash, soaring fuel prices from the Iran war pushing up ticket prices, a fatal air ambulance crash being blamed on the US military, and more.
Even as the aviation industry struggles to recover from soaring ticket prices, the idea of electric flights could soon bring the cost down.
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Heart Aerospace confirmed it has completed its first flight of the world's largest electric aircraft, taking off from Plattsburgh International Airport in New York and climbing to 1,100 feet while using its electric propulsion system to deliver over a megawatt of power.
Boasting a weight of 25,000 pounds at takeoff and a 106-foot wingspan, Heart Aerospace claims it's the largest fully electric aircraft to take flight.
Designed to demonstrate how an all-electric flight could be scaled for use with commercial airlines, the X1's flight included a taxi, takeoff, climb, maneuvering, and landing.
Considering a 27-minute flight of an Airbus A320 is said to cost up to $1,575 in fuel, you might expect this to be a similarly bank-busting undertaking.
Still, Heart Aerospace claims the X1 used just $5 of electricity during its first flight.
Explaining that the flight comes amid a 'sustained surge' in global jet fuel prices, that's apparently skyrocketed to $3.50 per gallon in the week ending August 7. As that's up 63% year over year, Heart says the X1 highlights "the potential for electric propulsion to deliver structurally lower aircraft operating costs while decoupling airlines from the volatility of global oil markets."
Cheering the inaugural flight, Anders Forslund, Founder and CEO of Heart Aerospace, said: "With the first flight of X1, Heart Aerospace has demonstrated electric flight at the scale of a commercial airliner.
"Electric commercial aircraft have the potential to fundamentally reshape airline economics and, ultimately, lower the cost of air travel for passengers. This is at the heart of our vision for abundant air travel, with electrification enabling more affordable, frequent, and cleaner air service to and from airports closer to home."
The Energy Information Agency expects wholesale jet fuel to average $3.37 per gallon in 2026, whereas the International Air Transport Association suggests airlines will spend around $350 billion on fuel this year.
This is nearly a third of all operating costs.
While the all-electric flight seems impressive, OilPrice.com notes that comparing the X1 to other flights is currently redundant because the X1 doesn't carry passengers and isn't yet intended for commercial service.
John Di Bert, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Air Canada, is still optimistic about where things could go.
Di Bert added: "The energy transition for aviation will require a range of solutions, from operational efficiencies to sustainable aviation fuels, and ultimately the development of new aircraft technologies.
"Our investment in Heart Aerospace and the ES-30 reflects Air Canada’s commitment to supporting innovative technologies that have the potential to transform aviation.
“X1’s first flight is an important milestone in that journey, and we look forward to continuing to work with Heart Aerospace as the ES-30 program progresses and plays its part in the future of regional aviation."
The ES-30 program is aiming to enter service in 2031 and plans to bring aircraft operating costs down by over 40%.
It's not just down to energy costs, with reduced maintenance thanks to simplified electrical propulsion and flight systems, as well as reliability thanks to advanced tech.
Although ambitious, Heart Aerospace thinks this cost advantage can even widen as battery tech evolves and crew efficiency can potentially be improved by tech.
At the time of writing, Heart is developing its first pre-production ES-30 at a Los Angeles manufacturing plant, with flight testing hoped to get underway in 2028.