Electric airplane prepares for 250mph flight

By Charlie Osborne | July 24, 2013, 8:52 AM PDT

Chip Yates, a builder and pilot of electric airplanes, is planning to launch into the sky again next month in order to break his own speed record.

After spending the best part of a year refining and remodeling the electric Long-EZ plane, Yates has prepared for a series of new flight tests next month. Last July, the pilot managed to top 200mph in the airplane, but the battery was destroyed in the process.

To try and correct power issues, a new battery supplied by EnerDel is now in use. The 450-volt, 80 amp-hour pack is able to produce 600 amps of output — twice the horsepower of the previous battery. On just 41 percent power, the Long-EZ was able to hit 175mph.