Siemens will build a motor for an electric-plane startup that plans to fly a battery-powered passenger jet, the firms announced Wednesday.
Alice is Eviation's nine-passenger all-electric airliner. It will fly it later this year after debuting at the Paris Air Show in July.
Airbus, Rolls-Royce, and others are studying battery-powered flight, but obstacles remain until passengers fly all-electric planes.
Eviation's Alice plane might take off at 14,000 pounds. The battery is 7,000 pounds.
“It's a huge battery with some aircraft built around it,” Eviation CEO Omer Bar-Yohay told CNBC.
Eviation says the Alice planes can fly 650 kilometers on a single battery with nine passengers.
The startup is one of many organizations offering alternatives to expensive regional or private flights or long vehicle rides.
chose Safran as its engine supplier, and plans to test its planes this year. EasyJet announced last year that it would fly Wright Electric nine-seat electric planes by 2027.
Other difficulties remain until these planes reach market, including convincing authorities they're dependable.