 | A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject.(November 2023) |
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| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aircraft manufacturing |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Founder |
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| Headquarters | Gothenburg, Sweden |
Number of employees | 130 (2022) |
| Website | heartaerospace |
Heart Aerospace is a Swedish startup company developing electric aircraft for regional travel.
The company is developing the ES-30, a hybrid-electric 30-passenger regional airliner. [1] The ES-30 is planned to have a fully electric range of 108 nautical miles (200 kilometres; 124 miles) or a 215 nmi (398 km; 247 mi) range when also using generators powered by aviation biofuel. A range of 430 nmi (800 km; 490 mi) could be possible if only 25 passengers are carried. Heart plans to have a proof-of-concept aircraft in 2024 and start flight tests in 2026, with an entry into service in 2028. The Garmin G3000 avionics suite will be installed with custom functions related to managing the aircraft's electrical systems. [2]
In March 2021, Heart signed a letter of intent with Finnair which would allow the airline to purchase up to 20 ES-19 aircraft. [3] In July 2021, United Airlines announced their intention to purchase up to 200 ES-19 aircraft to be operated on United Express routes by Mesa Airlines. [4] In September 2020, Sounds Air of New Zealand signed a letter of intent to purchase ES-19 aircraft. [5] In September 2022, Heart Aerospace cancelled their plans for the ES-19 to focus on the ES-30, and stated their intention to convert existing ES-19 commitments to the ES-30. [6]
In September 2022, Air Canada acquired a CA$5 million equity stake in Heart as part of a purchase agreement for 30 ES-30 aircraft, which are expected to enter service in 2028. [7] United Airlines, Sounds Air and Mesa Airlines reconfirmed their interest in the ES-30. Heart Aerospace also has letters of intent from Braathens Regional Airlines, Icelandair and SAS for a total of 96 aircraft, 6 units with Sevenair, [8] and an additional 40 units for lessor Rockton. [1]
Heart Aerospace's investors are mostly airlines, with the exception of a few companies. Their investors include:
Finnair is the flag carrier and largest full-service legacy airline of Finland, with headquarters in Vantaa on the grounds of Helsinki Airport, its hub. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both domestic and international air travel in Finland. Its major shareholder is the government of Finland, which owns 55.9% of its shares. Finnair is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance.
Embraer S.A. is a Brazilian multinational aerospace corporation. It designs, manufactures, and sells commercial, military, executive, and agricultural aircraft, as well as provides leasing and aviation support services. Embraer is the third largest producer of civil aircraft after Boeing and Airbus. It's also among the world's top 100 defense contractors. The company is headquartered in São José dos Campos, São Paulo.
ATR is a Franco-Italian aircraft manufacturer headquartered in Blagnac, France, a suburb of Toulouse.
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Sounds Air is a New Zealand airline based at Picton. The airline was founded in 1986 by Cliff and Diane Marchant to provide low cost flights to the Marlborough Sounds. The airline has a maintenance facility at Omaka aerodrome with its Sounds Aero Maintenance division based there.
A hydrogen-powered aircraft is an aeroplane that uses hydrogen fuel as a power source. Hydrogen can either be burned in a jet engine or another kind of internal combustion engine, or can be used to power a fuel cell to generate electricity to power an electric propulsor. It cannot be stored in a traditional wet wing, and hydrogen tanks have to be housed in the fuselage or be supported by the wing.
Sevenair SA, formerly branded Aero VIP, is a Portuguese regional airline headquartered in Cascais Aerodrome, western Lisbon. It operates domestic regional routes within mainland Portugal and also offers additional aviation services and non-scheduled operations in third countries. It is part of Sevenair Group, one of the biggest aeronautical groups operating in Portugal, which provides the following services: air transportation, aerial works, flying school, and aircraft maintenance.
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Nordic Regional Airlines Oy is a Finnish regional airline based on the grounds of Helsinki Airport. Norra is owned as a joint venture by Finnair, Finland's flag carrier, and Danish Air Transport.
The Embraer E-Jet E2 family are medium-range twinjet airliners designed and produced by the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer. It was developed as a successor to the original E-Jet family.
Boom Technology, Inc. is an American company designing a supersonic airliner named the Boom Overture. The company is also developing a one-third-scale demonstrator: the Boom XB-1 Baby Boom.
The Boom Overture is a proposed Mach 1.7, 64–80 passenger supersonic airliner with 4,250 nmi of range, which is planned to be introduced in 2029 by Boom Technology. The company claims that with 500 viable routes, there could be a market for 1,000 supersonic airliners with business class fares. It had gathered 76 commitments by December 2017. The aircraft is planned to have a delta wing configuration, but will be built with composite materials. Following a redesign revealed in 2022 it is intended to be powered by four dry (non-afterburning) 35,000 lbf (160 kN) turbofans. Regulations for takeoff noise or overland boom can be met or changed.
A hybrid electric aircraft is an aircraft with a hybrid electric powertrain. As the energy density of lithium-ion batteries is much lower than aviation fuel, a hybrid electric powertrain may effectively increase flight range compared to pure electric aircraft. By May 2018, there were over 30 hybrid electric aircraft projects, and short-haul hybrid-electric airliners were envisioned from 2032.
ZeroAvia is a British/American hydrogen-electric aircraft developer. The company was founded in 2017 by Valery Miftakhov, who currently serves as the company CEO. ZeroAvia is developing hydrogen-fueled powertrain technology aiming to compete with conventional engines in propeller aircraft, with an aim of zero-emission and lower noise. ZeroAvia expects to sell products by 2023 and demonstrate flights up to 500 miles (800 km) in aircraft of up to 20 seats. According to the company, by 2026, ZeroAvia intends to fly an aircraft over 500 miles range in aircraft with up to 80 seats.
