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Comment by phtrivier | Hacker News Reader

> There are already electric aircraft either in the works or soon available that could handle short-haul flights all day long

I'm afraid, no, not "soon".

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You're wrong. There are 9-seater craft that already had maiden voyages at the start of the year. Those will just increase in size and range. Progress in tech is moving very fast including in electric airplanes and France could accomplish it's claimed goals around emissions without bans.

I've seen enough aviation startups get that far and fail to be pessimistic about those actually getting to production. Though there is hope.

Fair enough, it's a hard problem to work on indeed. But I would ask, why not raise investment then? Why is the solution a ban, when we have working prototypes that get better every month and that have done maiden voyages? The solution is larger investments and partnerships into more R&D on these crafts, not to shutter the prospect entirely...

My point is precisely that: those investments are happening, that R&D is happening, and electric planes will happen, and they will reach commercial scale at some point.

And when then do (I would probably bet "in 10 to 15 years", and I would absolutely bet "later than you're optimisticly hoping", because that's what the people making the planes are saying [1] [2]), then the bans won't make sense, sure. At some point.

But the emphasis is _AT SOME POINT_, where the commercial fossil fuel propelled planes are travelling and emitting _RIGHT NOW_. The best time to reduce the number of flights was 20 years ago, the second best time is now.

MEANWHILE...

[1] https://www.dw.com/en/are-electric-planes-ready-for-takeoff/...

[2] https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/stories/2023-03-electrify...

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