Tesla’s PR is on fire right now. On the back of a very successful launch of the Tesla Model 3, the company is now showing off the Model S racing a plane. Borrowing 3km of Avalon Airport in Melbourne, the Qantas Boeing 737-800 aircraft and a Tesla Model S P90D went head-to-head in an drag race.
The Model S has a 0-100 time of around three second, and thanks to the power of thousands of lithium ion batteries connected to an electric motor, the car achieves max torque right out of the gate. The car also features on the lowest drag coefficients of any vehicle on the road, but it does have the downside of the friction of being connected to the road.
The 737 can generate more than 50,000 pounds of thrust, powered by two CFM International jet engines, and fly through the sky at a cruising speed of 850 km/h. Flat out in the air, it can approach the speed of sound.
In a battle Top Gear would be proud of, the Tesla took an early lead, while the much heavier plane took some time to get moving. Naturally at full speed the plane would exceed the top speed of the car and would win, but with a great launch of the line, the drag race was on.
The 737 narrowed the gap as it barrelled down the runway. The 737 reached its take-off speed of 140 knots and the Tesla reached its max at around 250 kilometres an hour.
Check out the video to see who won. Before we get to that, lets get to the business of why this test even happened. Sure its just fun, but with the price of jet fuel, this isn’t a showcase you can just throw on a whim.
Qantas and Tesla are announcing a collaboration to drive innovation for their customers and sustainability in the transport industry.
During the coming months Qantas and Tesla will introduce the following services and benefits for customers:
- Exclusive events for Qantas frequent flyers, enabling them to experience new Tesla vehicles and technology;
- Qantas Club membership for Tesla Model S owners;
- Tesla High Power Wall Connectors at Qantas Valet facilities in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide allowing Model S owners to charge whilst they travel.
Additionally Qantas will become Tesla’s airline of choice in Australia and offset all the car maker’s domestic corporate travel emissions as part of Qantas’ Future Planet Program. The companies have committed to regular meetings to investigate future opportunities around sustainable transport.
Qantas’ Head of Environment and Fuel, Alan Milne, said the collaboration was a meeting of minds.
“We’re huge admirers of the way Tesla has transformed the electric car sector as a premium brand and we look forward to sharing our understanding and advance the work we started in 2012 on biofuels as an alternative to jet fuel.
While we continue to work on long-term sustainable transport solutions, all carbon emissions from this race were offset, under Qantas’ Future Planet Program.
