How many AA batteries would it take to power an A380?

[Lysander]

For a four hour flight, let's say. How many could power a large plane like this? Would you need a separate plane carrying the batteries to power the other plane? Could you connect the planes in series like a sort of flying centipede? If you connected them in a ring using rechargeable batteries could they fly infinitely?

 

[Lysander]

The rechargeable option wouldn't work because battery charging is only around 70% efficient, meaning that 30% is lost, or otherwise it means it requires more than 100% of the electricity to charge the batteries back up to 100%.

In that case you'd presumably need other planes to fly in and recharge the ring as needed or to help swap in-flight batteries. There could be a permanent central rotating hub of planes.

 

[Lysander]

Extra credit - this exceeds the maximum payload of an A380 by approx 8 times if batteries are 27g each, so would not be feasible.

What if you split them up between eight planes?

 

[Lysander]

Oh my, you may have solved it (and broken laws of physics!).

It that breaking any laws of physics though? Could you not distribute the weight over eight planes, connect them in series and then use them to fly the other plane?

 

[Lysander]

Your solution is just powering most of that with conventional fossil fuels to support a single plane, which, if I'm right, kind of defeats the object.

But that single plane is still being powered by AA batteries so it saves on plane-batteries.

So something in the region of 187,620,204 batteries for a four-hour flight.

 

[Lysander]

The batteries spread across 8 planes would only be enough to power 1 plane. To power up 8 planes would need 8 times the amount (and weight) of batteries.

No, you power those eight planes conventionally.

 

[Lysander]

Its a non starter because the batteries would weigh more than the plane could lift aka the power to weight ratio is well lets not go there, ok?

I didn't say the batteries would be on the plane.

 

[Lysander]

Hot air balloon?

It would have to be able to lift 5,000 tonnes of batteries.