IHI steps up drive for electric planes to help cut fuel costs

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20200831N Boeing 787 for IHI story

The Boeing 787 is one of the most electrified jetliners in the world.

ANNU NISHIOKA, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Efforts to develop technologies for electric aircraft are taking off, with manufacturers seeing fuel-saving technologies as key to success in the coronavirus-hit industry.

Japanese heavy-industry powerhouse IHI has developed a system that will help airliners go electric for more than 90% of their equipment. Propulsion will be provided by conventional aircraft engines, but electricity will power air conditioning and other equipment, with the system featuring high-output motors for fuel pumps and air-cooled waste-heat technology.

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