Chip Yates is used to going fast, having obtained a private pilots certificate in a mere two months, and test flying an electric Long-Eze conversion (Long-ESA) within two weeks of that, but he didn’t count on making the world’s fastest electric aircraft emergency landing during a record-breaking speed run at Inyokern, California’s desert airport on July 19. With only 58 hours in his log book, Chip managed to make the runway for a bumpy but great touchdown – a great landing being one following which you can reuse the airplane. We’ve reported that event already, but Chip just released a great video of the white-knuckle event.
To help document his record 202.6 mph flight, Chip’s airplane was well instrumented, carried several cameras, and had a chase plane to provide eye-witness oversight.
In the two months he and fabrication partner Chris Parker of CPR Fabrication converted a Long-Eze into the world’s most powerful electric airplane (258 horsepower – 58 more than Green Flight Challenge winner, Pipistrel’s G4).
Chip will speak Friday, July 27th at 10:30am at AirVenture 2012 in the Innovation Hangar South, and then deliver a full-length technical presentation in the afternoon at 1:00pm in the Innovation Hangar South to review on-board telemetry and data from the record-setting flight. He’ll be able to enlighten anticipated crowds on the dead cell that shortened his base leg and forced an early turn to final.
After that, he’ll be back to Inyokern and more than likely go after speed and altitude records for electric aircraft while preparing for his planned tran-Atlantic flight in 2014.