PLANES WITHOUT FUEL*
Pilots in Norway say that flying between the small islands off the west coast is never easy, because the wind there can change direction in just a few minutes. Before a special week of flights last summer, a group of pilots trained for almost two months. Again and again, they landed on a very short runway*, and every morning they checked the weather report for each island. During the week, they carried about two thousand travelers, but not one of those flights used a drop of fuel. The planes were all electric.(lines 1–6)
Nora Berg, an engineer at a Norwegian company that builds small aircraft, says that today's planes have two big disadvantages. First, they need a lot of fuel. On a short trip between two of the islands, a normal plane uses about 300 liters. Second, they make a terrible noise, so families who live near an airport are often woken up at night. "Electric planes use no fuel, and you can hardly hear them," Nora says. "This is the reason that airlines and governments in many countries are putting millions of euros into them."(lines 7–12)
For a long time, a plane like this was only a dream. The old batteries weighed so much that a plane could lift only a few of them, and a few were not enough for a long trip. It took engineers over 30 years to make light batteries. "Our newest planes can go about 200 kilometers before they need charging," Nora says. "But a laboratory is not the real world. We came to the islands to see how the planes cope with strong wind and with real passengers."(lines 13–17)
On every one of the 12 planes, the pilots had to come down early at least once during the test because of strong winds. Each plane also had to stop for power several times a day. Only five planes finished their whole program of flights, and even they were slower than ordinary planes. Nora is not worried. Next summer, her company will bring larger planes that can take twice as many people, although they will not fly faster. "Many experts think that within ten years, electric planes could replace most short flights in Europe," she says.(lines 18–23)