How I flew halfway around the world with an electric bike (legally)
Have you ever tried flying with an electric bike? It’s surprisingly hard since those big lithium-ion batteries are usually not allowed in your checked luggage or in your carry-on. But that just made me even more determined to figure out a way to do it.
Electric bikes are a fast growing and fun way to get to work, get exercise, or just get around and have fun. While often used for transportation or utility, electric bikes are also great for recreation. That means many people want to travel on vacation or for work with an e-bike. But those big lithium-ion batteries pose a problem since they are too large for air travel.
Or at least most of them are.
Nearly all airlines will allow batteries up to 100 Wh of capacity, and many allow batteries up to 160 Wh. That’s not very much, and is usually the size of a chunky portable cell phone charging battery. By comparison, a typical e-bike battery ranges from 300-700Wh.
And so to find an e-bike I could take on a plane, I had to cheat. I had to find an unusual e-bike that would actually fit the bill. And boy, did I!
The JackRabbit’s battery measures in at 36V and 4.2Ah, or around 151 Wh. It’s not much, only enough for around 10 miles (16 km) of range per charge. But it’s also just $199 to snag a second pocket-sized battery, which is what many people do to extend their range.
If you guys haven’t seen my review of the JackRabbit, you’ll want to check that out.
It may look oddly proportioned, and it is, but it’s also fun to ride and amazingly convenient for a city dweller thanks to its mere 11 kg (25 lb) weight.
It was originally designed for students to navigate college campuses, and so it favors a small, lightweight, relatively inexpensive ride that works well in an urban environment.
Plus it’s the perfect e-bike for traveling by plane since it slips just under the regulations to allow it to be legally transported on passenger aircraft.
So to travel halfway around the world on a recent trip, I loaded up my JackRabbit e-bike (technically a form of seated scooter, also known as micro e-bikes) and its battery for the trip.
JackRabbit knows that many people use their e-bikes for travel, and they’re also common on private aircraft or boats as a way to get around once you land at a small airstrip or port. For that reason, the company created a travel bag perfectly sized for the JackRabbit.
The bag is just $125, which is actually pretty good for a travel bike bag. My main bike bag that I use for larger bikes cost around 5x as much (though it also has wheels) and hard armor. The JackRabbit travel bag may be lightweight and small, but it is reinforced in the areas where the axles and other hard points touch the bag. That means it is still small enough to fold up into something the size of a lunchbox.
I loaded up my JackRabbit in the bag, though I found it was a very tight fit. It took some serious jiggling, but it finally worked its way in.
The trick seemed to be to get the bike most of the way in, then hold the bag up on end and do a bit of wiggling and bouncing.
I had to remove the battery to keep it in my carry-on, since the batteries aren’t allowed in checked bags. Just to be safe, I also ran the battery to empty before the flight and also put a piece of tape over the battery contact.
From there, I simply checked in the bag like any other piece of checked luggage. That’s basically what it looks like, and I even managed to stuff about a week’s worth of laundry into the bag too (once the bike gets squeezed in, there’s still lots of negative space around the frame where your laundry can go).
I tossed an Airtag into the bag just to follow it along through the airports, which was useful since I also brought it on a several-day trip that had me passing through 5 or 6 different airports.
Once I made it to my final destination, which was a solid 7,000 or so miles (12,000-ish km) away from where I started, I unpacked the bike and charged up the battery. A couple hours later I was ready to rock and roll, riding away on my e-bike halfway around the world!
If I tried this with larger e-bikes that have higher capacity batteries, I’d have to ship the battery separately and go through a hazardous goods process.
I’ve done it before but it’s super complicated, costly and more of a hassle than most people will ever want to put up with. For those cases in the past I had to become a certified hazmat shipper, believe it or not.
Being able to simply drop your e-bike off at the check-in counter and pick it up at baggage claim is a pretty awesome perk of a small battery e-bike. You may not be traveling very far on a charge, but if you’re using the bike as a way to get around the city, then a shorter range likely isn’t a big problem. And worst case scenario: you just bring a spare battery. The more, the merrier!
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The new Quantum 3 battery energy storage system (BESS) from Wärtsilä is being describes as an intelligent, cutting-edge solution designed to meet the ever-evolving needs of utility-scale energy storage customers.
Housed in a 20-foot ISO container with single-side access, Quantum 3 is a complete AC block solution, with fully integrated and internalized batteries and string-based power conversion systems (PCS). That size was strategically chosen to facilitate global shipping and on-site transport using (relatively) small wheel loaders and top loaders, aiding in efficient on-site deployment and back-to-back configuration.
Coincidentally, that’s about the size our own Micah Toll chose to build his own off-grid charging hub – and if you haven’t ready about that, you need to.
Quantum 3 also features a sustainably designed housing (read: aluminum) for low weight, as well as advanced thermal controls that include low noise levels and a low global warming potential (GWP) cooling system, makes it a groundbreaking offering for meeting customers’ environmental and decarbonisation goals.
Wärtsilä built-in enhanced fire safety features are designed to ensure customer facilities are both fire-proof and future-proof.
“These are features we have worked extremely hard on and are very proud of. We have a proven track record of safe and reliable delivery worldwide,” says Andrew Tang, vice president of Energy Storage & Optimisation, Wärtsilä Energy. “Quantum 3 will help to further strengthen confidence among customers (utilities), local communities, and first responders that Wärtsilä’s systems will stand the test of time.”
Wärtsilä is sourcing Quantum 3 components from a geographically diverse set of suppliers, with manufacturing capacity across different regions of North America, Asia, and Europe. This should enable the company’s customers to take advantage of any local tax incentives while avoiding the kind of tariffs currently impacting global battery markets.
Wärtsilä grid scale BESS Specs:
- Fully integrated AC block for high system availability and optimised rack-level control to maximise system performance
- Industry-leading fire safety and cybersecurity features
- Increased energy density and back-to-back layout for optimum land use and efficient on-site deployment and configuration
- Standard 20-foot ISO container with a convenient weight for global shipment
- Sustainable design and cooling system with low GWP
- Advanced monitoring, control, and optimization from battery to fleet with Wärtsilä’s GEMS Digital Energy Platform
SOURCE | IMAGES: Wärtsilä, via Power Progress.
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Chinese heavy equipment manufacturer SANY has signed a strategic Agreement with European brand Alltrucks to fuel its expansion into the European market. (Probably.)
With this Agreement, the well-known brand Alltrucks will take on responsibility for the maintenance, diagnosis, and repair of the Chinese SANY eTruck vehicles in the EU. The company hopes an alliance with a trusted brand will help to alleviate customers’ concerns about adding “unknown” Chinese-built heavy equipment to their fleet.
“In Alltrucks, we have found a partner that shares our vision of sustainable mobility and has the necessary expertise and infrastructure to provide our customers with the best possible support,” explains Kevin Eichele, Head of Business Development at SANY eTrucks Europe. “Together, we will shape the future of freight transport in Europe.”
Alltrucks is a joint venture between Bosch, Knorr-Bremse, and ZF that offers 24-hour breakdown service, technical and marketing support, and an OEM-quality replacement parts network to truck fleets across the EU.
“We are delighted to be partnering with SANY eTrucks,” says Homer Smyrliadis, Managing Director of Alltrucks. “Our goal is to always offer our customers the best service. By working with such an innovative partner as SANY, we can further expand our service portfolio in the field of electromobility and make our contribution to sustainable mobility.”
The E-mixer shown (above) is the same model already in service at Pan-United Corp. It sends power to its wheels through a 6-speed transmission with significant torque multiplication, enabling it to claw up a 30% grade, even when fully loaded. (!)
Electrek’s Take
As a semi-professional journalist and passably professional person in general, I like to find at least two sources for any story. In this case, though, I couldn’t do that. As such, I feel like I need to tell you that the quotes used in this story are translated from a German email reportedly received by Electrive. The story does not appear on either the SANY Global or Alltrucks news pages, or (from the Google searches I tried) anywhere else.
It’s a significant story if it’s true – one that solves for the question of, “Where do I get my Chinese electric semi truck serviced?” with a very neat and tidy, “The same place you get your truck serviced now,” and I’m hoping that we’re just ahead of an embargo or something and that verification will come soon.
That said, take this one with a bit more than a grain of salt until that verification comes. Call it a teaspoon.
SOURCE | IMAGES: SANY (allegedly), via Electrive.
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After a successful pilot program, FedEx is expanding its electric delivery fleet with the purchase of 15 Workhorse W56 electric step vans.
Designed specifically to meet the demanding needs of commercial-scale last-mile delivery operations, the Workhorse W56 offers an efficient eAxle electric drivetrain, regenerative braking, and lightweight composite body panels to deliver superior efficiency, lower operational costs, and a reduced air pollution compared to diesel. The company believes these features make the W56 perfectly suited for the kind of stop-and-go delivery routes customers like FedEx, UPS, and (let’s face it) Amazon operate.
“FedEx is cultivating a strong roster of electric vehicle models that can meet the demands of our network,” says Pat Donlon, Vice President, Global Vehicles, FedEx. “In joining our fleet, the electric Workhorse W56 will be part of our story as we aim to transition our global parcel pickup and delivery fleet to all zero-tailpipe emissions vehicles by 2040.”
That fleet won’t just be cleaner – it’ll be much more efficient. According to the company’s press release, the W56 achieved an impressive 31 MPGe during FedEx’ real-world delivery route testing. That compares favorably to the national average fuel economy of 7 MPG for similar diesel delivery trucks, demonstrating significantly lower energy consumption per mile. Based on an average of 31,875 miles driven per vehicle per year, Workhorse says FedEx will be able to avoid an estimated 607 metric tons of harmful tailpipe emissions annually.
Electrek’s Take
Sharp readers will recall that UPS made headlines when it ordered 1,000 Workhorse delivery vans way back in 2018, and the company is still working to make good on that order following the completion of its Union City, Indiana manufacturing complex. Dubbed “Workhorse Ranch,” the company says its remodeled facility will be ultimately capable of building and painting 5,000 Workhorse vehicles per year on one shift.
In its 2023 financial statement, Workhorse claimed FedEx had seven Class 4 EV units in the delivery fleet, and that FedEx will begin electrifying its entire fleet to be electrified in 2024 with the first W56 step vans coming into service during Q1 2024.
We’re well into Q3 2024, obviously, but I don’t want to be seen as unreasonably harsh on Workhorse. Heck, a few quarters here or there seems downright reasonable on a Tesla Semi timeline – I just think a bit of historical context is needed whenever we talk about startups like this. Head down to the comments and let me know if you agree.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Workhorse, via the EVReport.
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