The goal of the new giant plane is to create the largest plane ever to fly

We have a global energy crisis, and onshore wind farms are a potential growth option. Larger wind turbines produce more power than standard ones, but the components are too large to be transported by road.

What is the answer? A Colorado-based energy startup called Radia has an idea. He is working on the largest plane in the history of aviation.

Meet the WindRunner aircraft whose mission will be to deliver giant 300-foot propellers directly to wind farms.

To help the world achieve its decarbonization goals, the world will use sustainable aviation fuel and require only a straight, compacted or gravel runway for landing.

It will operate from regional hubs, Radia says, delivering cargo where it’s needed, and “can land on runways as short as 6,000 feet (1,800 meters), something no other large commercial aircraft can achieve.”

Let’s talk specs, baby

When it comes to carrying the largest loads ever transported by air, the Delity simply can’t handle it.

So the WindRunner will have a cargo hold of 272,000 cubic feet, enough to hold three Olympic-size swimming pools. That’s 12 times longer than a Boeing 747-400, and at 356 feet long, it’s also 57 feet longer.

As for the wingspan, it is 261 feet – imagine four bowling lanes connected to each other.

It will also overshadow the Antonov An-225, the heaviest plane ever built, which was destroyed at the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The scale of the plane may be groundbreaking, but the engineering isn’t – and that’s by design. Radia says it focuses “on existing technology and safety, using, where appropriate, tried and proven aerospace materials, components and manufacturing techniques that are FAA (US Federal Aviation Administration) approved, that are already in mass production and involve with the lowest risk. “

The idea is to get off the ground quickly with a fast, well-built fleet that meets aviation industry standards. Online reports say commercial operations will launch as early as 2027, but there is no confirmed timeline on Radio’s website. CNN has reached out to the company for comment.

It’s windy there

Radia is based on estimates by the Bloomberg NEF research organization that as much as $10 trillion will be spent on onshore wind energy by 2050. The development of WindRunner is to be enabled by GigaWind, XXL turbines produced by Radio’s partners, which include five of the six largest turbine manufacturers in the world.

Currently, turbine blades are typically 230 feet or less (70 meters), but Radia wants to use blades up to 104 meters (341 feet) long. The company says GigaWind turbines have the potential to be two to three times more powerful and two to three times more profitable than those currently in use.

So who are the people behind these ambitious claims? The founder and CEO is Mark Lundstrum, a cross-industry entrepreneur and MIT aerospace engineer who founded Radia in 2016. The company says its advisory team includes former top officials from Boeing, MIT, Rolls-Royce and the FAA, and also included US Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz and former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

This is an impressive range, and the decision to focus on safe, existing technology is a smart one. Could we see WindRunner launch before the end of the decade? Could its distinctive shape one day become as popular as the Beluga XL cargo planes created by Airbus? Watch the sky.

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