FLYING Magazine
Virginia-based manufacturer Electra revealed plans to bring its flagship EL9 Ultra Short—a nine-passenger, hybrid-electric aircraft intended for operations using soccer field-sized spaces—from design to reality.
The manufacturer Tuesday announced that it signed an airframe agreement with The Atlas Group that will see Atlas manufacture and assemble EL9 airframes for Electra’s flight test and certification program. Electra said the work is scheduled to begin in September, with first deliveries expected in 2027.
That lines up with the company’s timeline for the EL9’s debut flight, which it has previously said will come in 2027 or ’28. It has validated the model’s ability to take off and land in as little as 150 feet using a two-seat demonstrator, the EL2 Goldfinch, that in August began real-world operational trials in Virginia, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Those include flights into Atlantic City Bader Field (KAIY) in New Jersey.
The activities are being conducted under contract with the FAA and are expected to span at least three years. Electra hopes to fly the EL9 under the same arrangement before it concludes.
The company aims to have the model ready for commercial service in 2030 and in July announced Springfield, Ohio, as home of the first EL9 production facility. It plans to invest $850 million into the site, which it said will produce up to 800 aircraft annually.
Safran Helicopter Engines will provide the Ultra Short’s turbogenerator, which is built around the company’s Arrano gas turboshaft engine and a pair of Safran Electrical & Power’s GENeUS electric generators. Evolito will supply the model’s eight hybrid-electric engines. Its digital fly-by-wire control system will be built around Honeywell flight control computers.
EL9: From Design to Reality
Electra has promised that the EL9 will enable “direct aviation,” which it defines as bringing safe and affordable air service to locations that are smaller and closer to where people live and work than traditional airports.
It would do so using compact “access points” that take advantage of the aircraft’s 150-foot ground roll and low noise output, which the company estimates at 75 dBA during takeoff and landing. EL9 access points could include general aviation airports as well as rooftops, parking lots, fields, barges, malls, casinos, or even ski resorts.
At the same time, the Ultra Short will be large enough for a pilot to fly up to nine passengers and about 50 pounds of luggage each.
Electra estimates that with access points, the EL9 could save travelers hours on more than 2,600 routes spanning 50 to 265 miles that are suboptimal for driving but lack routine commercial air service. It believes 12,000 to 16,000 aircraft will be required to meet demand within the first decade of operation.
Atlas performs advanced manufacturing operations—including for “complex aerostructures,” according to Electra—in Kansas, Utah, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Mexico. The goal of the airframe agreement is to “mature the EL9 production architecture, reduce manufacturing risk, and build the industrial foundation needed to scale output after certification,” Electra said Tuesday.
Marc Allen, CEO of Electra, said the partnership will give it the “ability to build and deliver [the EL9] with the consistency and scale of an advanced production system.” Greg Harwell, CEO of Atlas, added that the company will realize the aircraft as a “producible, scalable platform” that is “positioned for successful growth and long-term market adoption.”
Initial EL9 production will be made possible through the FAA’s approval in July of a G-1 certification basis for the design. Electra said the G-1 defines the certification roadmap for the aircraft’s blown-lift aerodynamics and distributed electric propulsion system—which enable it to take off at low speeds and with minimal ground roll—as well as its digital fly-by-wire controls.
The approval established a formal certification basis for the EL9 under Part 23 regulations and a path for Electra to prove the aircraft meets the same safety standards required of existing commercial aircraft. With the G-1 in tow, the manufacturer can confidently begin building the aircraft it needs for flight testing and certification.
Still, the FAA has not yet defined how the EL9 must show compliance with the provisions outlined in the G-1. That will come with the agency’s approval of a G-2 issue paper. Once the G-2 is accepted, Electra could start using the EL9 airframes built by Atlas to prepare for certification testing.
The manufacturer said Tuesday that it has more than 2,200 provisional aircraft orders from more than 60 operators worldwide. They include Bristow Group, which in January signed a multimillion-dollar predelivery payment agreement for the first EL9 delivery slot. The agreement covers five aircraft plus options for 45 more.