VoltAero's hybrid-electric powertrain for Cassio is put through its paces during flight tests

The most powerful hybrid-electric powertrain for VoltAero's family of Cassio production airplanes is building up flight time in airborne evaluations on the Cassio 1 testbed aircraft, including its first public presentation during an event organised on the 21st October at the company's Aerodrome de Royan-Medis headquarters in southwest France.

Installed in an aft-fuselage "pusher" position with a five-blade propeller, this proprietary power module combines three 60 kW high-performance electric motors with a 370-hp. internal combustion engine. It prefigures the propulsion system to be used on VoltAero's largest production Cassio aircraft: the 10-seat Cassio 600 version, which is to deliver a total hybrid-electric power of 600 kW (800 hp.).

The Cassio 1 testbed also retains two wing-mounted ENGINeUS 45 electric motors from Safran Electrical & Power, installed in the forward-facing "puller" position. The ongoing testing of these "smart" electric motors, as well as the hybrid-electric power module, is providing unmatched in-flight experience for VoltAero with cutting-edge electrical propulsion.