Aerospace firm BAE Systems is further investing in electric-aviation technologies, revealing plans to open a new technology development and production site at its existing facility in upstate New York.
The company and the state of New York, which will support the project with $8.5 million in tax credits, disclosed the expansion on 19 February. New York says BAE pledged to invest $65 million in the effort.
The expansion will see BAE add 13,935sq m (150,000sq ft) to its Endicott, New York site, with the new space dedicated to housing “high-voltage” energy storage technologies.
“The facility investment in New York will enhance energy storage systems development and production capacity to support the emerging aircraft electrification programmes,” BAE says.
The news comes four years after BAE said it was investing in its Endicott site for the purpose of developing electric-aircraft systems. At that time, BAE programme engineering manager Matthew Boecke described that effort as helping position the firm at the forefront of the electric air taxi segment.
Back then, investment in electric air taxis was booming. That hype, however, has since cooled, and some companies are now leaning more into hybrid-electric propulsion.
BAE also has a long history of developing flight controls, including fly-by-wire systems.
It makes no mention of air taxis in disclosing its latest investment in Endicott, and the company did not immediately respond to questions about its ongoing interest in that segment.
But BAE makes clear it broadly views electric systems as central to the future of aviation.
“The expansion underscores BAE Systems’ commitment to the commercial aircraft electrification market segment… [and] positions the company for future growth,” BAE says.
The addition will house “pilot production lines for new-product development maturation, fully automated high-volume manufacturing capability… [and] a state-of-the-art engineering laboratory to test battery cells and energy storage systems”, BAE says.
It expects to complete the expansion within the “next few years”.
