Electrification is coming to aviation, but Ampaire’s CEO Kevin Noertker says the practical near-term path is hybrid-electric, not fully electric. In Hangar X, he explains how Ampaire shifted from bold sci-fi concepts to a certifiable retrofit strategy, proven in rugged deployments.

Episode Highlights

• Big belief: Electrification will transform aviation like it did cars.

• Pivot to hybrid: Full-electric retrofits proved the tech, but hybrids were faster to certify and sell.

• Infrastructure bottleneck: Hawaii showed charging networks lag aircraft readiness.

• How it saves fuel: Cruise-optimized combustion + electric boost for takeoff/climb.

• Cert progress: FAA hybrid-engine certification + Eco Caravan STC path.

• Safety gain: Dual power sources add graceful-degradation resilience.

Key Points with Timestamps

• Why electrification is inevitable — Ampaire’s founding insight.
  [00:00:00 – 00:03:34 ]

• Original “North Star” vision — fully electric VTOL supersonic jet → unpacked into steps.
  [00:06:15 – 00:07:31 ]

• Why hybrid beats full-electric (for now) — certify propulsion first, avoid aircraft redesign loops.
  [00:07:31 – 00:09:34 ]

• Retrofit lessons + Hawaii “aha” — planes ready before charging was.
  [00:07:31 – 00:13:32 ]

• Hybrid architecture (H570) — integrated parallel hybrid on one prop shaft.
  [00:18:10 – 00:21:37 ]

• Fuel savings mechanics — ~50% cruise, up to ~70% takeoff/climb.
  [00:21:37 – 00:25:31 ]

• Certification roadmap — engine cert + Caravan STC, aiming mid-2027.
  [00:25:31 – 00:27:47 ]

• Scaling plan — same stack for regional, cargo, GA, drones, defense.
  [00:27:47 – 00:30:28 ]

Guest Bio

Kevin Noertker is co-founder/CEO of Ampaire, developing hybrid-electric propulsion to cut emissions and costs in regional aviation. Ex-Northrop Grumman, NOAA satellite work, NASA JPL research; Caltech graduate.

About Speedbird Ampaire

Ampaire is a California aviation company building hybrid-electric propulsion and retrofit aircraft for existing turboprop fleets. Its flagship AMP-H570 “AmpDrive” combines a Jet-A piston engine with an electric motor/battery boost, flying on the Eco Caravan (hybrid Cessna Grand Caravan). The strategy targets near-term fuel and emissions cuts without depending on charging infrastructure.

Notable Quotes

• “Electrification… is going to transform aviation.”

• “Designing a new airplane around immature propulsion guarantees redesign.”

• “Charging infrastructure will be slow to proliferate.”

• “Our launch product must be self-charging and infrastructure-independent.”