Aero Electric Aircraft Corp. (AEAC) announced plans for a four-place airplane, “Sun Flyer 4,” the next addition to the Sun Flyer family of aircraft. In addition, Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology is the first flight school to hold a deposit for a Sun Flyer 4.
Spartan College First Flight School to Hold 4-Seat Electric Aircraft Deposit
The two-seat Sun Flyer, “Sun Flyer 2,” will be the first FAA-certified all-electric trainer aircraft under FAR Part-23. The new four-seat will closely follow the certification of the two-seat version. Features of the Sun Flyer 4 include a 46-inch cabin width, 38-foot wing span, ballistic parachute recovery system and a gross weight of 2,700 lbs., with a full 800 lbs. of payload for pilot and passengers.
“Like Sun Flyer 2, Sun Flyer 4 will run completely on batteries,” said George Bye, CEO. “As a result, the four-seat airplane will have operating costs five times lower than costs associated with similar combustion-engine aircraft. With four hours of flying time, the versatile Sun Flyer 4 will appeal to both flight schools and pilot-owners.”
Spartan College, which holds 25 deposits for production Sun Flyer 2s, is the first flight school to hold a deposit for a Sun Flyer 4. Spartan will develop a complete training system for the Sun Flyer family of aircraft, including a course syllabus for airframe and powerplant (A&P) technicians to receive specialized electric maintenance training.
“Providing our students the opportunity to train on a variety of airplane models is paramount to a diversified flight education. The addition of the four-seat airplane will enable us to take multiple students on cross-country flights during their training on these groundbreaking aircraft,” said Dr. Dan Peterson, President and CEO of Spartan College.
Sun Flyer is intended to be the first FAA-certified, U.S.-sponsored, practical, all-electric airplane to serve the flight training and general aviation markets. It features a low operating cost, low aircraft unit cost, low noise and the elimination of exhaust pollutants. Electric energy, or “fuel,” cost for Sun Flyer is multiples lower compared to the per-hour cost for piston-engine leaded avgas.
The prototype Sun Flyer 2 is on static display in Booth #19, (near the entrance) at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
ABOUT AERO ELECTRIC AIRCRAFT CORP.
AEAC is developing the Sun Flyer family of aircraft, the first FAA-certified U.S.-sponsored, practical, all-electric airplanes serving general aviation and the aviation flight training market.
ABOUT SPARTAN COLLEGE OF AERONAUTICS AND TECHNOLOGY
Spartan Education Group, LLC owns colleges that provide top-tier training in aerospace. Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology has two campuses in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area, two in the Los Angeles, California area, and a campus in the Denver, Colorado area. Over the last 85 years, they have trained over 130,000 students from more than 60 countries making it the most significant aviation training organization in history. Spartan Education Group and its schools are backed by Sterling Partners, a growth-oriented private equity firm with substantial holdings in education.
