Embraer and WEG will jointly develop new technologies and solutions to enable electric propulsion in aircraft.

The Brazilian partnership seeks to accelerate understanding of the technologies necessary to increase the energy efficiency of aircraft through the use and integration of electric motors in innovative propulsion systems.

Daniel Moczydlower, Executive Vice President of Engineering and Technology at Embraer, said: “By creating this technological development agreement with WEG, we have combined more than 100 years of innovation from two leading companies in generating knowledge and strengthening the supply chain, as well as increasing Brazilian competitiveness in the global market.

“Advances in scientific research can make clean and renewable energy a major enabler of a new era of urban and regional air mobility that is more accessible to the population.”

WEG already provides global solutions for electric motors, variable frequency drives, soft starters, controls, panels, transformers, and generators.

Paving the way

Manfred Peter Johann, Superintendent Director of WEG Automation, commented: “Our powertrain technology, developed over years for tried and tested applications in trains, buses, trucks and boats, and in constant evolution, has paved the way for this exciting scientific and technological cooperation project. Together with Embraer we will work not only to enable the electric propulsion of aircraft, but also to increase the technological capacity of WEG, of Embraer and of Brazil, taking our country to an even more competitive level.”

After testing these technologies in the laboratory, an aeronautical platform will be used for integration and testing of complex systems under real operating conditions. A small single-engine aircraft, based on the EMB-203 Ipanema, will be used as the test bed for the primary evaluation of the electrification technology.

The first flight of the electric-powered demonstrator is scheduled for 2020.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter