Hybrid-Electric Passenger Jet Gets 100-Plane Launch OrderWill the next generation of the CSeries also be hybrid-electric like this new plane from Booeing? Hybrid-Electric Passenger Jet Gets 100-Plane Launch Order From JetSuite
https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelgoldstein/2018/05/22/hybrid-electric-passenger-jet-gets-100-plane-launch-order-from-jetsuite/#513951685c08 
“If you’ve got the money, you’re for real” is Willem Dafoe’s line from the great action film To Live And Die In LA. In the airplane business, if you’ve got a launch customer for your product, you’re for real, even if you’re a new technology company like Zunum Aero with a motto like “Bringing you electric air travel out to a thousand miles.”
With its upcoming hybrid-electric executive jet capable of operations from small regional airports, Zunum Aero is aiming at the lucrative regional market, which is currently served by roughly $1 trillion worth of aging, noisy aircraft. The aircraft, the first of a planned family of regional platforms, seats up to 12 passengers and is slated for delivery in 2022. Zunum Aero is a Seattle-based startup funded by Boeing HorizonX, JetBlue Technology Ventures and the State of Washington Clean Energy Fund,
The launch customer for Zunum is JetSuite, which has announced it will buy up to 100 of the fledgling aircraft maker's upcoming 12-seat passenger jets powered by hybrid-to-electric jet engines. JetSuite currently offers what it calls public charter service via Embraer E135 30-seat jets, with regular flights between West Coast cities from private jet terminals. This allows JetSuite to offer “faster, more comfortable service” without TSA lines, like what turboprop-based competitor Surf Air is offering in California and Texas.
Why is Zunum building a ‘hybrid electric’ aircraft, as opposed to all-electric? As anyone who has watched their smartphone quickly ‘die’ or noted the sub-100 mile range of most electric cars knows, battery development has not yet caught up with advancing technology. That’s particularly true in the aircraft industry, as fossil fuel like kerosene still is six to eight times more energy-dense than the most advanced lithium-ion batteries currently available. So the new Zunum aircraft will initially ship with a hybrid-electric and gas-powered turbine powertrain, which Zunum plans to ultimately upgrade to full electric when the technology improves. Zunum Aero is not alone in developing hybrid-electric technology; Airbus announced their efforts last year.
While technical details of the propulsion system are scarce, the company says that the initial design will be a hybrid-electrical system, “future-proofed” with extensive battery packs in the wings (which account for 12-20% of aircraft weight) for current hybrid and eventual all-electric operation. Current specifications call for a hybrid power unit generating 1,300 hp (1,000 kW) driving two ducted fans, along with a “range extender” a current-technology gas turbine capable of developing 670 hp, or 500 kW, mounted in the rear fuselage.
The still-unnamed Zunum aircraft (known internally as the ZA10) is projected to offer a maximum cruise speed of 340 mph and a range of up to 1000 miles. It will require just 2,200 feet of runway for takeoff and landing, allowing it to potentially access over 5000 secondary airports in the US near residential areas.
Just as important, Zunum projects that cost per seat mile will be about 8 cents, or just $250.00 per hour to operate the aircraft. The company also claims that the hybrid-electric powertrain will be both quieter and less polluting/carbon-emitting than conventional jets, creating up to 80% lower noise (65 EPNdB) and 80-100% lower emissions than conventional aircraft.