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Electric gate concept: the lounge plane with windows in the roof

Electric gate concept: the lounge plane with windows in the roof

An aircraft concept called Portal wants to show that traveling short distances can look very different. This includes the facades of large windows.

Often the highlight of the trip: the view from the window. Approaching Paris in the evening, upon crossing the Alps, upon taking off from a dreamy island – who wouldn’t like to sit by the window and enjoy the bird’s eye view?

However, a window seat on today’s plane means that two passengers in each row have a small, head-height oval window next to them. Ken Kirtland, a student at the Georgia Institute of Technology in the US, thinks this might be better.

Alternative to planes and cars

Kirtland designed a short-range electric plane with large windows, with some passengers also sitting forward-facing. In addition, windows are provided in the flat roof of the fuselage. The concept is called Portal and is in the finalists for the Crystal Cabin Awards 2022 in the ‘University’ category.

The Kirtland concept is said to be an alternative to kerosene-powered aircraft, but also to cars. The airline that is being planned also aims to connect disadvantaged airports in the United States that are between 300 and 1,100 kilometers apart.

Please go back

Four engines and six cubic meters of batteries will power the aircraft and enable a cruising speed of about 400 kilometers per hour. Depending on the furniture, there is room for 35 to 50 passengers. Enter from behind. The battery is also charged from the back, which should take less than an hour.

There are standard seats to furnish the cabin, but there are also more exclusive variants that, combined with large window facades, give the aircraft a more lounge atmosphere. Outward-facing seats are always present. In the middle there are different options, for example with two opposite seats or small separate booths with more privacy for travelers.

You can see the concept of the gate in the photo gallery above.