HEART AEROSPACE

HX-1 ES-30: Sweden’s groundbreaking zero-emissions aircraft

Swedish start-up Heart Aerospace reached an impressive milestone on September 12 by unveiling the first HX-1 demonstrator aircraft, which will be used in the development of the ES-30 project.

The aircraft is a four-engine regional aircraft that will be powered by a hybrid-electric system and will be able to seat up to 30 passengers.

The pioneering aircraft was unveiled in Gothenburg, where the company is based, just two years after it was announced.

Heart has already been pursuing the design of a zero-emissions passenger aircraft, but has shifted its focus from a small electric plane with 19 seats to a hybrid model with greater capacity after consulting potential customers.

The Heart X1 is the project’s starting point and will be used for ground tests until the first flight is scheduled for the second quarter of 2025.

The first demonstrator, however, is an all-electric aircraft. It will be succeeded by the HX-2, a pre-production model equipped with a hybrid system and which will also incorporate a new engine nacelle capable of providing short takeoffs and landings.

Entry into service by the end of the decade... The HX-1 is a surprising aircraft in that it already has the final appearance of a production model. It has a high-wing configuration with a 32-meter wingspan and a T-tail.

The style is reminiscent of a four-engine ATR with smaller external propellers. In the final version, the two internal engines will be electric while the external ones will be turboprops.

The main landing gear compartment under the fuselage also houses the batteries, leaving the aircraft somewhat elevated in relation to the ground.

Heart will disassemble the HX-1 to take it to the United States for flights, but has not revealed a location. Mojave Air & Space, in California, and Grant County International Airport, in Moses Lake, appear as candidates to receive the aircraft.

The company's project has government support from Sweden and the US, as well as partners such as airlines SAS, Braathens and United Airlines. The ES-30 is designed to fly up to 200 km in electric mode and 400 km with extended hybrid propulsion, but the company hopes to expand the flight envelope as it improves its technology. Entry into service has been delayed from the 2028 schedule and is now suggested as later in the decade, when Heart awaits type certification.

Vivaero