The Future of Flying Is Electrifying | Cory Combs | TED Countdown

Transcriber:

翻译人员: William Xu 校对人员: Helen Chang

I work in aviation, but the truth is I don't much like flying.

我从事航空业，但事实上 我并不是很喜欢乘飞机出行。

Current commercial flights are inconvenient,

现有的商业航班既不方便，

noisy, expensive and use ancient plane designs

又有噪音，而且价格高昂， 并且这些飞机的设计

that have hardly changed from the 1950s.

从上世纪五十年代开始就几乎没有改变过。

It also represents my biggest personal impact on the environment,

这也代表了我个人对环境影响最大的一件事，

just as it does for many of us who fly multiple times a year.

而且对我们这些每年要 通过飞机出行好多次的人来说，都是这样。

Aviation will continue to face fierce headwinds globally

航空业的发展将继续在全球范围内面临强烈的阻力，

even after the pandemic subsides,

即使在疫情平息之后，

because flying is becoming the symbol of a polluting lifestyle.

因为乘飞机出行代表的是一种产生污染的生活方式。

Pressure is growing to decarbonize planes or even cease flying altogether.

不断攀升的压力迫使我们想办法让飞行更环保， 或者甚至完全停止飞行。

But the great news is

但好消息是，

that a change which will reroute our industry's flight path

航空业正迎来一场变革，这将重写 行业的发展路径，注入发展新动能，

into fresh tailwinds

has already begun and is gathering speed.

而且这场变革已经开始，并加速推进。

This change is the third revolution in aviation -- electrification,

这便是航空业的第三次革命，即电气化，

and it is happening right now.

这场变革正在进行中。

Like the previous piston and jet revolutions,

正如上一次从活塞到喷气的变革，

going electric will dramatically transform the way we fly.

电气化将极大地改变我们乘飞机出行的方式。

Electrification promises to make flying accessible to more people globally

电气化有望使全球飞行普及， 让更多的人能够飞行，

from more airports

让更多的机场能够通航。

while also making planes cleaner, quieter and more affordable.

同时，也让飞行更清洁、安静和便宜。

The current dominant narrative is that we need to buy offsets

目前主流的观点是我们需要购买碳补偿，

while waiting for some miracle future clean fuel

并期待未来能够出现清洁能源。

and meanwhile keep cramming people into tubes at increasingly congested hubs.

与此同时，在日益拥挤的各大航空枢纽， 我们把出行的人们塞满机身。

That fails to reckon with the rapid progress

这一观点，根本没有考虑到

电气化技术方面进展迅速

in electric technology

across nearly all other forms of transportation.

体现在几乎所有的其他出行方式上。

So my answer in 2016 was to create a company called Ampaire

所以，我在 2016 年 创立了安飞（Ampaire）公司，

and develop an electric aircraft capable of flying real routes for real airlines.

致力于研发一款电动飞机， 真正应用于商业航班。

And we have done so with this plane, the Electric EEL,

通过不懈的努力， 我们研发了这款电动 EEL飞机，

which first flew in 2019.

并在 2019 年进行了第一次试飞。

In 2020, our second generation of this plane

2020 年，我们的第二代电动飞机

flew with an airline partner in Hawaii

在夏威夷地区的一条航线上

demoing daily flight operations on one of their routes, a world first.

进行了日常往返示范飞行，属于全球首次。

Meanwhile, we're hard at work on the third generation of the EEL,

同时，我们也在努力研发第三代电动 EEL飞机，

as well as scaling up to a much larger 19-passenger aircraft

并考虑研发一款更大的， 可以搭载 19 名乘客的电动飞机，

with the help of NASA.

在美国国家航空航天局（NASA）的帮助下。

Now, these aren't yet fully electric planes.

目前这些并不是纯电动飞机。

They're hybrids.

它们是混合动力飞机。

And that's actually my point today

这也正是我今天的观点，

and why the current dominant narrative misses the mark.

也是为什么当前主流观点无法实现目标的原因。

Electrification does not only mean pure battery electric.

电气化并不是指纯电池动力。

That's just not possible yet,

目前为止还不可能实现，

when you need to carry passengers or cargo,

因为需要搭载乘客或者运输货物，

except for small trainer aircraft.

除非是小型教练机，还有这个可能。

Instead, our industry must start saving massive amounts of fuel and emissions

反而，我们航空业必须开始节省燃油， 大幅度减少排放，

by electrifying the entire aviation ecosystem.

这需要通过电气化整个航空生态系统来实现。

Electrifying aviation right now

目前要发展的航空业电气化

means solar panels and battery backup systems at airports,

是指机场采用太阳能电池板和备用电池系统，

plugging planes into gate power instead of burning fuel,

给飞机接通地面电源， 而不是通过消耗燃油供电，

electric taxi to the runway

通过电力驱动滑行至跑道，

as well as electric tugs and ground equipment.

另外还包括电动牵引车以及电动地面设备。

For flight itself, electrification means starting with small aircraft

对于航班来说，电气化 意味着从小型飞机着手，

and for planes of meaningful commercial size,

针对大型的商业飞机，

payload and range starting hybrid.

为了满足装载和续航的需求， 可以先从混合动力开始。

Although hybrid isn't the ultimate goal,

虽然混合动力不是终极目标，

it is critical to start right now

但关键是从现在就要开始行动起来，

rather than waiting for future batteries or future fuels.

而不是期待出现未来电池和未来燃料。

Think of cars where we had a small Prius decades before a large Tesla semitruck.

正如普锐斯混合动力小型汽车问世的几十年之后， 才有了特斯拉大型电动半挂卡车。

Small planes like Ampaires

安飞公司的小型飞机，

are the proving grounds for electric technology,

正是电动技术的试验场。

be it lighter high voltage cables,

不论是更轻的高压电缆，

better compact motors or advanced power electronics

还是更好的小型电动机 或者更先进的电力电子技术，

that are key to unlocking higher efficiency

这些都是解锁更高效率的关键，

in aircraft of all sizes.

从而能够适配所有大小的飞机。

Electrification will permeate everything,

电气化将渗透到各个领域，

from jumbo jets becoming more electric aircraft

大型喷气客机逐步变成电动飞机，

to repowering island hopper prop planes.

跳岛航班的螺旋桨飞机也是。

As batteries and electronics improve,

随着电池和电力技术的完善，

larger and larger aircraft will get more and more electric over time.

大型飞机将逐渐采用更多的电力技术。

This is not a pipe dream

这并不是白日梦，

but represents iteration along a practical,

而是代表迭代升级，朝着一条切实可行，

cost effective and achievable route into the future.

经济有效并且可以实现的路线，迈向未来。

Ampaire is being joined by other companies

其他公司正加入安飞的行列，

that are also striving to transform aviation to a cleaner future.

他们也致力于变革航空业， 打造更清洁的未来。

It's a revolution in the making,

这场变革正在进行中，

building on technologies derived from electric ground transport,

基于地面交通电力技术 发展而来的技术基础，

inventing new solutions and taking them higher and higher into the stratosphere.

我们正创造新的解决方案， 并将这些技术应用于更高的平流层。

Thank you.

谢谢。