MagniX

MagniX is an electric motor manufacturer for electric aircraft, wholly owned by Singapore investor Clermont Group.[1] The company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, United States, and has an engineering center in Queensland, Australia, where they were founded.

MagniX
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryAerospace manufacturer
Founded2009 in Queensland
HeadquartersRedmond, Washington, U.S.
ProductsElectric motors
OwnerClermont Group
Websitewww.magnix.aero

History

The company was founded in 2009 in Australia to research various technologies for electric motors. In 2017, it developed a motor that became their prototype and led to pivoting the company to focus on Electric Aviation and move its headquarters to Redmond, Washington. The Magni5, its original prototype electric motor, was developed in 2017.

In June 2018, MagniX publicly stated plans to fly an electric Cessna 208 Caravan with a 540 kW (720 hp) motor for up to an hour, by August 2019.[2] By then, the company's Magni5 electric motor could produce 265–300 kW (355–402 hp) peak at 2,500 rpm at 95% efficiency with a 53 kg (117 lb) dry mass motor, having a 5 kW/kg power density. The Magni5 competes with the 260 kW (350 hp), 50 kg (110 lb) Siemens SP260D for the Extra 330LE.[2]

By September 2018, a 350 hp (260 kW) electric motor with a propeller had been tested on a Cessna iron bird. The 750 hp (560 kW) Caravan was expected to fly by the fall of 2019 and by 2022 MagniX estimates electric aircraft could fly up to 500 and 1,000 mi (800 and 1,610 km) by 2024.[3] The motor ran on a test dynamometer for 1,000 hours. The iron bird is a Caravan forward fuselage used as a test bed, with the usual PT6 turboprop engine replaced by an electric motor, inverter and a liquid-cooling system, including radiators, driving a Cessna 206 propeller. The production motor will produce 280 kW (380 hp) at 1,900 rpm, down from the test motor's 2,500 rpm, allowing the installation of the propeller without a reduction gearbox.[4]

By April 2019, the Magni250 375 hp (280 kW) was offered for the Eviation Alice as a second power option after Siemens 260kW motors, as MagniX had accumulated over 1,500 hours of ground tests in Redmond and Australia.[1]

By then, MagniX partnered with Harbour Air to electrify its entire fleet: the first converted aircraft was to be a DHC-2 Beaver serving as the test prototype for the magniX motor, energy storage, and control systems.[5] On December 10, 2019, the eBeaver flew for the first time.[6] Low energy density but proven lithium-ion batteries filled the cabin and took the prototype to its maximum gross weight to provide enough energy for a 15 min flight with a 25 min reserve.[7]

The first flight of the modified Cessna 208B Grand Caravan was completed at Grant County International Airport on May 28, 2020.[8] The eCaravan is powered by a 750 hp (560 kW) motor and a 1 t (2,200 lb), 750V lithium-ion battery. Its 30 min first flight consumed $6 worth of electricity, needing 30-40 min of charging. The Magni500-powered variant can fly 100 mi (160 km) with 4-5 passengers while keeping reserve power, and aims for a certification by the end of 2021, hoping to operate 100-mile flights with a full load of nine passengers with better batteries.[9]

In January 2021 the company announced that they will be moving their headquarters from Redmond to Everett, Washington, with plans to relocate all of their Australia operations there as well.[10]

Products

See also

Related lists

References
  1. Jon Hemmerdinger (22 Apr 2019). "MagniX to supply Eviation Alice motors as all-electric advances". Flightglobal.
  2. Michael Bruno (Jun 7, 2018). "MagniX Promises Electrically Powered Cessna Caravan By Summer 2019". Aviation Week & Space Technology.
  3. Alexa Rexroth (September 27, 2018). "MagniX Reaches Milestone on Path to Electric Propulsion". AIN online.
  4. Graham Warwick (Sep 28, 2018). "MagniX Advances Electric Propulsion System Tests". Aviation Week & Space Technology.
  5. Rytis Beresnevicius (3 April 2019). "Harbour Air set to become the first all-electric airline in the world". AeroTime Hub.
  6. "Seaplane makes 'first' commercial electric flight". BBC. 2019-12-11.
  7. Graham Warwick (December 13, 2019). "Harbour Air And MagniX Claim First For Electric Aircraft". Aviation Week Network.
  8. Gates, Dominic (May 28, 2020). "Redmond startup powers all-electric first flight of a Cessna commuter plane". The Seattle Times.
  9. Jon Hemmerdinger (29 May 2020). "All-electric Grand Caravan makes maiden flight". Flightglobal.
  10. O'Connor, Kate (21 January 2021). "magniX Moves To Everett". AVweb. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  11. magniX Product Page
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