An electric plane crosses the New Zealand strait for first time

Published November 1, 2021 at 6:22 AM EDT

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep.

Jet fuel contributes to climate change. But Gary Freedman's plane didn't use any. His propeller plane is a two-seater that says ElectricAir. And he's believed to be the first person to fly a battery-powered airplane across the New Zealand strait which separates that country's two main islands. Orville Wright said, the airplane stays up because it doesn't have the time to fall. This one stayed up because it still had 40% left in the battery.

It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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