Two On Board Were Uninjured In The Accident

Norway's first electric aircraft went down last week after experiencing a power failure during a flight that carried State Secretary Aase Marthe J. Horrigmo as a passenger. Neither Horrigmo or the pilot, Avinor CEO Dag Falk-Petersen whose company owns the airplane, was injured in the accident.

Air Transport World reports that local media in Norway is characterizing the accident as a setback in the country's plan to make all domestic aviation electric-powered by 2040, despite the fact that the technology is still under development.

According to the report, the plane went down in a lake shortly after takeoff from Arendal airport, southwest of Oslo. Falk-Petersen told the local newspaper VG that they were returning to the airport when the power issue developed and then failed completely. The cause of the power failure has not been determined.

Photographs published by Norwegian media show the plane nose-down and partially submerged in the lake.

Avinor operates Norway's 44 state-owned airports as well as Wideroe Airlines. Several electric aviation start-ups are working with Avinor in its effort to shift the country's GA segment to electric aircraft.

Aviation Safety Network lists two other accidents involving electric aircraft. One occurred in January in Switzerland, in which the pilot made an emergency landing when an electric airplane lost power shortly after takeoff. The other occurred in October 2018 in the Netherlands which involved a fatality.  

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report
Source report