People can now take a scenic flight on an electric plane thanks to the Waterloo Wellington Flight Centre. “It’s an incredible experience, It’s definitely something that’s different than what we do every day,” flight instructor Aidan Albrechtas said. The flight centre, located at the Region of Waterloo International Airport in Breslau, is home to two Velis Electro airplanes, Canada’s first certified electric aircraft. One of the planes is used for research with the Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Aeronautics (WISA) at the University of Waterloo. The other is now available to be booked for scenic flights, after regulatory changes were made by the federal government last year. “Before we could only tell you about it. And our research assistants, the research team, of course, had the experience. But now it’s open for any enthusiast who says, ‘I really wonder, what is it like to have a quieter airplane?’” Paul Parker, professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo’s Faculty of Environment, said. The two electric planes arrived at the flight centre in 2022 and have undergone testing since, logging more than 300 hours of flight time according to Mehrdad Pirnia, associate professor in Management Science and Engineering at the University of Waterloo. “Everything that we’ve done showed that the plane is safe, the plane is reliable,” Pirnia said. Offering a chance for members of the public to fly in the aircraft is seen as an important next step, and an educational opportunity. “They are building trust,” Pirnia said. The plane is powered by two batteries and can carry about 180 kilograms of passenger weight. Two people fit inside. The pilot and passenger will spend about 30 minutes in the air during a scenic flight, plus there will be time to learn about the plane. Before speaking with CTV News on Wednesday, Pirnia himself had just returned from a flight that involved a tour over the region as well as parts of Brantford and Guelph. “I’ve never seen Waterloo this beautiful, actually,” Pirnia described. Albrechtas said many of the people who go up want to see their home, or in the case of students, their university campus, but may end up seeing more than they expect. “On a great visibility day oftentimes you can see the Toronto skyline as well, down to Lake Ontario towards Hamilton,” Albrechtas said. Gabriel Song, another flight instructor and the research assistant coordinator at WISA, said there are a number of things that make the experience different from other flights. “Just the refinement of it all. The lack of vibration. There is still some noise, but less noise,” Song described. “And the fact that the windows are super clear and you can see so much out of them really brings up the experience for me.” The aircraft operates under visual flight rules, meaning flights are weather-dependent. “We want it to be an enjoyable experience, so, when the wind’s not too strong, when the rain is not pouring,” Parker explained. “This is really fair weather flying at the moment. But of course, that range of activity will expand over time.” A flight costs $267 plus tax, and can be booked through the flight centre’s website. “We’ll be flying all summer, into the late fall. The only thing that will stop us, of course, is weather,” said Julie Mudry, marketing and communications manager at the Waterloo Wellington Flight Centre.
