ES-30 electric passenger plane: no test flight yet, but 200 sold

The ES-30, a Swedish-built 30-passenger plane that is designed to have a fully battery-powered range of 200 kilometres, has not flown for one single meter yet. Despite that is has not been airborn, its developers and builders have already sold 200 aircraft to companies all over the world.

Euronews reports that the ES-30 aircraft is a product of Sweden’s aircraft manufacturer Heart Aerospace. The attraction of this particular aircraft is that it can take up to 30 passengers to regional destinations at a distance of 200 kilometres. The story could even become better. A planned backup hybrid turbo generator, powered by sustainable aviation fuel, could double the range of the aircraft to 400 km.

These are numbers that attract attention. Despite not yet having a working prototype that is ready for a test flight, the company is already drawing interest from several international airlines. The order book lists 200 sales, and counting. The company builds a flying prototype set for test-flights in 2026.

The aircraft seems to fit the Scandinavian market very well. As the spokesperson for the Swedish Aviation Industry Group puts it: “We have a market in Scandinavia and a geography that simply fits very well. In northern Norway, we have these short routes of maybe 14, 15 minutes, up to 20 minutes between airports – that will be a perfect first market".