Heart Aerospace, the Swedish hybrid-electric airplane start-up has revealed its first full-scale demonstrator airplane, marking a major milestone in the development of its regional hybrid-electric aircraft, the ES-30.

Assembled at Heart’s Gothenburg facilities, the demonstrator reflects the company’s strategy to develop both the design and production processes.

“Our industry is approaching a 30-year innovation cycle, and we have less than 25 years to decarbonise aviation. We need to develop new methods to get net zero aerospace technologies to market faster,” says Anders Forslund, co-founder and CEO of Heart Aerospace. “It is a testament to the ingenuity and dedication of our team that we’re able to roll out a 30-seat aircraft demonstrator with a brand-new propulsion system, largely inhouse, in less than two years. “

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With a 32-meter wingspan, the demonstrator, named Experimental 1 (Heart X1), will serve as a platform for testing and development of the company’s ES-30 aircraft.

Initially, the HX-1 will be used for ground-based testing, focusing on charging operations, taxiing, and turnaround procedures. It is scheduled to undertake a fully electric first flight in the second quarter of 2025. In preparation for this flight, Heart will over the coming months, test critical systems by running hardware tests both on and off the airplane.