Electric, hydrogen and supersonic aircraft compared

How far have battery-electric, hydrogen, low-boom supersonic and eVTOL aircraft got in flying and certification?

This comparison sets four low-carbon or quieter aircraft routes side by side on what has flown, stated capacity or range, certification status and the main limitation. Each route is still at test, demonstration or regulatory stage, and the only type certificate cited is for a two-seat battery-electric trainer.

Electric, hydrogen and supersonic aircraft compared. Each cell shows a value, how well it is evidenced, and its sources.
Option	What has flownThe aircraft or test that has flown or run, with year and whether it was a flight, ground test or simulation.	Passengers or rangePassenger seats, passengers, or range as stated by the developer, in seats, passengers, km or Mach. Figures are design targets unless the cell says otherwise.	Certification statusRegulatory status as reported: type certificate, experimental certificate, proposed rule or no certification found.	Main limitationThe main constraint the sources identify before the route can reach passenger service. Described in words, with no units.
Battery-electric aircraft	Heart Aerospace reports that its X1 electric aircraft flew on 12 August 2026 on a 27-minute piloted flight under an FAA Experimental Category special airworthiness certificate.Reported, unverified[3]	Heart ES-36 (planned, 2031 entry into service): 36 seats, 200 km all-electric range, 1,200 km hybrid range. Company design figures for an uncertified product.Proposed[2]	Pipistrel Velis Electro, a two-seat pilot trainer, type-certified by EASA, announced 10 June 2020. No larger battery-electric passenger aircraft certification was found in the sources checked.Demonstrated[1]	NASA's electrified aircraft FAQ says weight is the biggest issue for electrified aircraft generally. It does not address battery mass in particular.Reported, unverified[10]
Hydrogen aircraft	The sources checked report only ground and simulated tests. Airbus says its fuel-cell demonstrator was powered on at 1.2 MW in 2023 after a testing campaign. Rolls-Royce, working with easyJet, ran a Pearl 15 engine on 100% hydrogen to take-off thrust across a simulated flight cycle. No hydrogen passenger flight is reported in these sources.Reported, unverified[4][5]	No reliable public figure	No hydrogen passenger aircraft certified in the sources checked. The UK CAA roadmap sets out a pathway to support scaling hydrogen operations for small aircraft by 2035.Proposed[5]	The CAA report's evidence covers small aircraft, drones, engine testing and airport ground operations. It does not address passenger aircraft.Reported, unverified[5]
Low-boom supersonic aircraft	NASA's X-59 research aircraft first flew on 28 October 2025. NASA reports that it flew supersonically on 5 June 2026, at about Mach 1.1 and about 43,400 ft.Demonstrated[6]	Boom Overture (planned): 60 to 80 passengers at a cruise speed of Mach 1.7. Company figures; whether the speed applies over water or overland is not stated.Reported, unverified[7]	No passenger supersonic aircraft certification found in the sources checked. An FAA proposed rule to allow overland supersonic flight was published on 2 July 2026; it is not final.Proposed[8]	NASA reports that sonic booms from the F-15 chase aircraft obscured any sound made by the X-59 on its supersonic flight. The overland supersonic rule is still a proposal.Demonstrated[6][8]
eVTOL air taxis	Joby reports power-on testing of its first FAA-conforming aircraft began in November 2025. No flight figure was found in the sources checked.Reported, unverified[9]	No reliable public figure	No type certificate confirmed. Joby says its aircraft is in Type Inspection Authorization testing, which it describes as part of the final stage of the FAA type certification process.Reported, unverified[9]	The FAA's final type certification decision is still pending. Joby says range, speed and energy management will be validated in TIA testing, but its announcement gives no figures.Reported, unverified[9]

Electric, hydrogen and supersonic aircraft compared. Each cell shows a value, how well it is evidenced, and its sources.

Option

What has flownThe aircraft or test that has flown or run, with year and whether it was a flight, ground test or simulation.

Passengers or rangePassenger seats, passengers, or range as stated by the developer, in seats, passengers, km or Mach. Figures are design targets unless the cell says otherwise.

Certification statusRegulatory status as reported: type certificate, experimental certificate, proposed rule or no certification found.

Main limitationThe main constraint the sources identify before the route can reach passenger service. Described in words, with no units.

Battery-electric aircraft

Heart Aerospace reports that its X1 electric aircraft flew on 12 August 2026 on a 27-minute piloted flight under an FAA Experimental Category special airworthiness certificate.Reported, unverified[3]

Heart ES-36 (planned, 2031 entry into service): 36 seats, 200 km all-electric range, 1,200 km hybrid range. Company design figures for an uncertified product.Proposed[2]

Pipistrel Velis Electro, a two-seat pilot trainer, type-certified by EASA, announced 10 June 2020. No larger battery-electric passenger aircraft certification was found in the sources checked.Demonstrated[1]

NASA's electrified aircraft FAQ says weight is the biggest issue for electrified aircraft generally. It does not address battery mass in particular.Reported, unverified[10]

Hydrogen aircraft

The sources checked report only ground and simulated tests. Airbus says its fuel-cell demonstrator was powered on at 1.2 MW in 2023 after a testing campaign. Rolls-Royce, working with easyJet, ran a Pearl 15 engine on 100% hydrogen to take-off thrust across a simulated flight cycle. No hydrogen passenger flight is reported in these sources.Reported, unverified[4][5]

No reliable public figure

No hydrogen passenger aircraft certified in the sources checked. The UK CAA roadmap sets out a pathway to support scaling hydrogen operations for small aircraft by 2035.Proposed[5]

The CAA report's evidence covers small aircraft, drones, engine testing and airport ground operations. It does not address passenger aircraft.Reported, unverified[5]

Low-boom supersonic aircraft

NASA's X-59 research aircraft first flew on 28 October 2025. NASA reports that it flew supersonically on 5 June 2026, at about Mach 1.1 and about 43,400 ft.Demonstrated[6]

Boom Overture (planned): 60 to 80 passengers at a cruise speed of Mach 1.7. Company figures; whether the speed applies over water or overland is not stated.Reported, unverified[7]

No passenger supersonic aircraft certification found in the sources checked. An FAA proposed rule to allow overland supersonic flight was published on 2 July 2026; it is not final.Proposed[8]

NASA reports that sonic booms from the F-15 chase aircraft obscured any sound made by the X-59 on its supersonic flight. The overland supersonic rule is still a proposal.Demonstrated[6][8]

eVTOL air taxis

Joby reports power-on testing of its first FAA-conforming aircraft began in November 2025. No flight figure was found in the sources checked.Reported, unverified[9]

No reliable public figure

No type certificate confirmed. Joby says its aircraft is in Type Inspection Authorization testing, which it describes as part of the final stage of the FAA type certification process.Reported, unverified[9]

The FAA's final type certification decision is still pending. Joby says range, speed and energy management will be validated in TIA testing, but its announcement gives no figures.Reported, unverified[9]

What the table shows

A battery-electric aircraft has flown under an experimental certificate, and the only type certificate cited is for a two-seat battery-electric trainer.
The sources checked report no hydrogen passenger flight; the hydrogen results are ground tests and a simulated flight cycle.
The NASA X-59 has flown supersonically, and the FAA rule for overland supersonic flight is still a proposal.
No eVTOL type certificate is confirmed, and Joby's aircraft is in Type Inspection Authorization testing.

Read with care

Figures for planned aircraft, including seats, range, Mach number and service dates, are company targets rather than measured service performance, so they are not directly comparable with test results.
Ground tests, simulated flight cycles, experimental-certificate flights and type certificates are different levels of evidence, and each cell says which one applies.
Blank cells mean no reliable public figure was found in the sources checked on 21 October 2026. They do not show that no figure exists.

Sources

government report
EASA certifies electric aircraft, first type certification for fully electric plane world-wide
European Union Aviation Safety Agency, 10 Jun 2020. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
company announcement
ES-36 | Heart Aerospace
Heart Aerospace, 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
company announcement
Heart Aerospace Completes First Flight of World's Largest Electric Aircraft
Heart Aerospace, 13 Aug 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
company announcement
ZEROe: our hydrogen-powered aircraft
Airbus, 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
government report
Regulator publishes report marking important progress towards hydrogen aviation in the UK
UK Civil Aviation Authority, 20 Jul 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
government report
NASA's X-59 Aircraft Flies Supersonic for First Time
NASA, 5 Jun 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
company announcement
Overture - Boom Supersonic
Boom Supersonic, 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
other
Proposed FAA rule would allow civil supersonic flight over the United States
DLA Piper, 6 Jul 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
company announcement
Joby Begins Power-On Testing of First Conforming Aircraft, Enters Final Stage of Type Certification Process
Joby Aviation, 6 Nov 2025. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
government report
EAP Frequently Asked Questions
NASA, 31 Dec 2025. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.