the logistics of this seem hilarious and ridiculous, but i guess we’re still in that stage with electric aircraft where nothing is too outlandish to be off the table:
Magpie Aviation’s concept uses one or more electric aircraft to act as a tractor plane towing a passenger (or cargo) aircraft using a long cable. The towed plane would have enough battery power for takeoff, landing and flying to alternate airports but not enough to fly the full distance on its own, as reported by AeroTime.
The lead plane would take on the bulk of the traction, and when its battery is depleted, it could hand off towing duties to another electric towing aircraft to extend the rear plane’s range. Magpie CEO Damon Vander Lind summarized to Aviation Week, “You get towed until you’ve depleted down to your reserve in the lead aircraft, and then you swap in another tow aircraft.”
I wonder if someone is working on a gound-based launch system like the catapult used on aircraft carrier.
The energy for takeoff wouldn’t have to come from battery, but passengers would take more acceleration. Hopefully it’d be more tolerable than on aircraft carrier, if the runway is longer the acceleration may be lower.
I’m not sure how much this would help. I believe the plane is using almost as much fuel during the ascent to cruising altitude as during the actual takeoff from the ground. And of course the physics of launching a heavy passenger plane this way might be more challenging than a smaller military aircraft.
