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martyb [soylentnews.org] writes:

Rolls-Royce Wants to Shatter the Electric Plane Speed Record [cnet.com]:

Rolls' electric racing plane was first announced earlier in 2019, and while on the face of things, its 500 horsepower rating and propeller-style propulsion may seem a bit old-fashioned, ACCEL as it's known is anything but. In fact, Rolls-Royce plans to use it to set a speed record.

ACCEL -- which stands for "accelerating electrification of flight" -- makes use of several unique design ideas to further its record-breaking agenda. The 750-volt battery pack being used in the racer features 6,000 individual cells that together will offer 200 miles of range. To spin its single low-speed propeller, ACCEL uses three lightweight electric motors, stacked together which deliver a combined 500 hp.

The shape of the plane is reminiscent of the racing monoplanes of the 1930s and 40s, as well as the sleek fighters employed by the Allies during World War II. This means that ACCEL features a sleek mono-wing design with a long and narrow fuselage that should allow the modestly-powered aircraft to exceed 300 miles per hour.

They hope to undertake an attempt at the current electric plane speed record — set in 2017 by Siemens at 210mph — sometime in 2020 in the UK.

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