Hybrid powertrain enables record flight times.
On January 19th, 2018, a hybrid drone named Owling took off at 09:15 AM in Tianjin, China and landed at 16:32 PM. The flight lasted 437 minutes, or 7.3 hours.
Owling was powered by a Richenpower Ltd H2 hybrid system, H2 weights 4 kilograms 8.8 lb, and generates a continuous 1.8 kilowatts or 2.4 hp. H2 has 11 times energy density compared to a 2 kilowatts traditional generator, 7 times compared to a digital generator.
A sped up version of the entire 7-hour flight is here. It didn’t move very far which is impressive in its self.
Owling weighed 44 lbs (20kg) and carried 2.8 gallons (10.5 litres) of fuel.
