Sizing and Mission Analysis of Multirole Short-Haul All-Electric Seaplane for Sustainable Aviation

Seaplanes are the aircraft that can take-off and land from water. There are lots of emissions of CO2 and GHGs by aviation industry which can be lower down by the use of electric engines. This paper summarizes the sizing and mission analysis of multirole short-haul all-electric seaplane. There are plenty of opportunities for this type of aircraft as the infrastructural requirements for the operation are much lower compared to those for the conventional aircraft. In this study, an electric seaplane is sized to meet twin operational requirements of a multi-role mission, viz., short-haul air transportation (SHAT) and Air Sea Rescue (ASR). It is seen that though the battery energy density required for the critical mission, viz. ASR, is extremely high ($\sim$ 2 kWhr/kg) but for SHAT, it is just 0.625 kWhr/kg, for comparable mass of fossil fuel. In comparison to a conventional aircraft using fossil fuels, the all-electric aircraft results in mitigation of 3600 kg CO2 emission in each ASR mission, thus establishing it as a potential solution for sustainable aviation.