Wright Electric wins US Air Force contract to develop high-power rechargeable batteries

On August 7, Wright Electric, an American electric aircraft company, announced that it had received a contract from the U.S. Air Force to develop high-power rechargeable batteries for multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The contract aims to explore the possibility of using Wright Electric's rechargeable thermal batteries for UAVs. According to information disclosed on the official website, the battery model it provides for electric aircraft and unmanned aircraft systems is Air-1, with an energy density of 800 Wh/kg, which can enable small unmanned aircraft systems to have a range of 1,000 km. Disposable batteries that work at high temperatures are usually called thermal batteries and are widely used in various military equipment. Wright Electric will use rapid prototyping manufacturing technology to quickly produce small batches of rechargeable batteries to replace traditional thermal batteries and ensure the resilience of the supply chain for key defense components. According to company officials, its goal is not to develop completely new battery chemistry components, but to develop a process to produce special batteries at a reasonably low cost and quickly adapt to customer requirements. Wright Electric was founded in 2016 to manufacture electric aircraft and reduce the impact of the aerospace industry on the climate. The company is working with NASA, the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy and the U.S. Department of Defense to develop ultra-light motors and batteries for these aircraft.