Tesla News: Does Elon Musk Have Plans For An Electric Airplane?

Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk hinted Saturday at possible plans for a long haul Tesla electric airplane, which could be rolled out in about five years.

"Is it possible for planes to fly off a battery? Or is there not a powerful enough battery yet?" a Twitter user asked Musk on the platform. "Yes, but a still bit too limited on range," Musk responded. "That will change as the energy density improves."

"Jet A (Kerosene) has much higher density than Li-ion, electric motors weigh much less & convert stored energy to motion better than combustion energies," Musk continued, referring to lithium ion batteries. He then said that by his own calculations, it would be possible to develop high-density energy batteries to power electric airplanes within the next five years.

So far, there have already been some attempts to build electric planes. Slovenia-based plane maker Pipistrel's Alpha Electro all-electric plane has become popular at U.S. flight schools and received an airworthiness certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in July 2018.

Vancouver-based airline Harbour Air announced in May that it plans to be the world's first all-electric airline. The company will mainly just use the aircraft to perform short 30-minute trips in the Canadian province of British Colombia.

Other options to airplanes running on fossil fuels include biofuel from plants, which some studies show to be a competitive and efficient alternative.

Electric and biofuel airplanes could have a huge impact on carbon dioxide emissions in the environment to prevent climate change. Global aviation is currently responsible for 2% of the world's human-induced carbon dioxide emissions.