10 years ago, electric cars seemed like something of a distant future; now they're everywhere. Tesla was one of the first companies to start the hype and now almost all car manufacturers present more and more electric cars. If we've come along this far with cars can we translate the concept to planes? Can we just stuff some batteries into our planes and replace the turbines with electric engines? Let’s have a look at the future of electric aviation and its potential to make flying green.

When one thinks of green energy, solar power is one of the first forms of production that comes to mind. We can power our houses, charge our phones and even run a cinema with the sun, can't we use it to fly around as well? Well, yes and no.

Not so long ago we managed to fly around the world in a solar-powered aircraft. Everyone had their doubts: Would the plane take off? Would it be able to finish its trip around the world? Well, it did but rather slowly. It took pilots Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg 505 days to complete the journey. For most distances, the solar plane defied the idea of flying — you know, speed — because its cruise speed was much lower. What is more, the plane had a wingspan close to a jumbo jet but would only carry one person: the pilot. So in order for solar-powered air travel to become commercially viable, we would need to develop some extraordinary solar panels and more efficient planes.