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Flight schools earn revenue when planes are flying, so an important question is how many hours can they expect an e-plane to fly in a day?Future batteries and future e-planes offer bigger promises, but let’s look at the world’s only type of certified electric trainer on the market today, the Pipistrel Velis Electro with its second-generation battery.

Pramoth's personal journey being the first to receive the ‘International Aviation Sustainability Certification.

July brought record high temperatures to many parts of Canada. Even the normally cool Vancouver Island had six days in a row above 30°C at the Campbell River airport (CYBL), including a new record of 33.4°C on July 8th.Did these hot temperatures affect the performance of the e-plane based there? Did battery temperatures rise unexpectedly? 

When an electric plane is designed for pilot training, one of the first questions is “Can you complete the standard lessons in the e-plane?”.

Circuit training is one of the core activities in learning to become a pilot. Pilots need to learn the skills to take-off, fly a standard circuit pattern, and land safely. Last year, we reported completing 5-7 circuits in a typical flight in the Velis Electro before landing with a reserve of at least 30% SOC, State of Charge, in the battery (equivalent to how much fuel remains in the tank).

Collaborative Aeronautics Program (CAP) students who got to tour the Waterloo Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower.

The clouds parted on a rainy day on Vancouver Island so that Edwin, a 15 year old high school student, could pay $20 to have his first flight lesson. The unique part of the introductory flight was that the plane was fully powered by batteries. This marks the beginning of ‘commercial’ electric aviation in Canada.  

The student was selected based on his essay: Why I want to pilot an electric plane. 

The Pipistrel Velis Electro comes with a charger designed for the European 400-volt electrical system. This means that a special transformer needs to be installed at any North American airport where the Velis is to charge. (Note: Pipistrel is developing an adapter which will allow the Velis to be charged using CCS chargers, which will remove this hurdle. CCS is one of the most widely used electric vehicle charging standards.)

The electric plane fleet expanded across the country in 2024. Canada’s first Pipistrel Velis Electro was flown by Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Aeronautics (WISA) researchers and Waterloo Wellington Flight Centre (WWFC) personnel in 2023. Waterloo has added a second Velis Electro for 2024 (with financial support from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario) and a third Velis Electro was purchased by Sealand Aviation on Vancouver Island (with financial support from Clean BC)

Waterloo finance student Angelica Lee was nominated for a global aerospace award. She shares her journey and advice to inspire others in non-traditional career pathways.