A game changer - Otto Aviation's Celera 500L

By Willie Bodenstein

28.04.2024





Meet the Celera 500L, a bullet-shaped airplane from Otto Aviation aiming to revolutionize traveling forever by cutting fuel consumption 8 times and bringing emission-free electric aviation incredibly closer.

Otto's six-seat Celera 500L features a laminar-flow design that Otto claims will deliver 4,500-nm range at cruise speeds of 391 knots. The company has not provided more details about the projected performance for the 750L.



The egg-shaped design of the aircraft helps achieve laminar flow on the plane's surface, reducing drag by 59% compared to similarly sized aircraft. As a result, the plane gets fuel economy figures between incredible 18-25 miles per gallon, which is better than a large SUV and an average pickup truck. The efficiency will be further improved once Celera is equipped with Hydrogen-electric powertrain in cooperation with Zero Avia later on.




In December 2020, Otto announced plans to develop a zero-emissions version of the 500L, the 750L, and have it available by 2027. The Model 750L that could be operated on flights of up to 1,000 nm will be powered by ZeroAvia's hydrogen fuel-cell system for the airplane. ZeroAvia have started flying a 19-seat Dornier 228 testbed aircraft fitted with the 600-kW ZA600 powertrain.



The Celera 750L will provide even more competitive operating costs due to reduced maintenance expenses for the propulsion system and the lower price for hydrogen versus jet-A.





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