More Electric Aircraft Market - Segmented by Product Type, Application, and Geography - Growth, Trends and Forecasts (2019 - 2024)

The More-Electric Aircraft (MEA) is a new segment of the eco-friendly transportation systems. It is widely used by the military as a next-generation aircraft for better operational efficiencies. Reduced emissions from electric motors have pushed lawmakers and the FAA to use this technology, change laws and their intricacies.

General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) released (February, 2017) the first global standard for measuring hybrid and electric propulsion in a general aviation aircraft. According to them, fuel reserves for flight should last 30 minutes, which includes a journey between two points, takeoff, flying pattern and return. The association also released standards for vertical flight pattern for rotorcraft and new generation aircraft that may have vertical takeoff capacity.

Airbus and Boeing have slowly introduced more-electric architecture on aircraft. Hydraulic systems in the Airbus’s A380 and A350 have been replaced with two electric systems successfully proving the technology to be safe. Airbus further plans to replace hydraulic power systems with electric generators on wide body aircrafts. The aircraft APU is considered dead weight inflight, to be used in rare cases when both engines fail, to act as an emergency power generator. Improvement in battery capacity density is expected to act as a major deciding factor for the future MEA.

The opportunities for these systems are immense in military applications

MEA’s find major acceptance and application from the military, due to the inherent nature of silent electric engine operation. The military needs aircraft that can fly low and not be detected during ISR, and hence MEA’s are widely used for small electric aircraft and UAVs. Some militaries use small electric aircrafts and UAV’s to train their pilots in air-to-air combat. The MEA brings in the integration of systems for control and intelligence of operating in-flight systems. The more-electric approach has allowed aircraft industry to reduce loss in propulsion thrust by 59% just by converting pneumatic/hydraulic/mechanical actuator systems into power electronics.

The need to minimize greenhouse gas emissions will drive the market

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had declared that jet engine exhaust endangers public health to a significant extent by contributing to climate change. The agency is in the process of developing regulations which are meant to reduce carbon emissions from commercial aircrafts. It is reported that large commercial jets usually account for 11 percent of all emissions from the global transportation sector. Aircraft emissions are usually expected to grow by 50 percent by 2050 with the increase in the demand for air travel.

The Clean Sky initiative launched in public-private partnership between the European Commission and the European aeronautics industry had announced plans to improve the MEA performance to reach 20-30% lesser fuel consumption and related CO2 emissions. Airbus and Boeing are two aircraft dealers operating MEA, and Boeing’s B787 is the only aircraft in the MEA segment, which has successfully balanced fuel consumption and weight to deliver power equal to that of a fully ATF powered aircraft engine. Although the range of flight is slightly less compared to other aircraft in the same engine power segment, the cost of operation has reduced by few dollars per person, per mile. Geographically the MEA’s are expected to make sales in the EU and US region where the push for pollution-free vehicles is strong.

Boeing, Airbus, and Pipistrel are some of the key leading vendors in MEA market. The market is segmented by Platform (Commercial, Military, and UAV), Technology (Power Electronics, Thermal Management, Safety Systems, and Advanced Materials), and Geography (North America, South America, Europe, Middle East & Africa and Asia Pacific).

Key Developments in the Market:

1. Zunum Aero, has revealed its plans to fly a hybrid electric aircraft 2020. The aircraft would have a range of around 700 miles at launch which indicates that the aircraft will be suitable for regional air transport and the plan is to extend the flying range to 1,000 miles by 2030 which will make these aircraft commercially viable across the world.

Major Players: AIRBUS S.A.S and BOEING

Reasons to Purchase this Report:

The report:

• Provides latest insights into the More electric aircraft market.
• Gives a detailed analysis of the competitive landscape in the More Electric aircraft market
• Analyzes the market scenario with the help of Porter’s Five Forces Analysis.
• Forecasts the market value by assessing the impact of the market drivers and constraints.
• Analysis of the role likely to be played by more electric aircraft in a country’s armed forces?
• Analysis of viability of these aircrafts in regional transportation?

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