Balerion Principal Aidan Daoussis sits down with Eric Bartsch, Co-Founder & CEO of VerdeGo Aero, to discuss hybrid-electric aviation. VerdeGo develops hybrid-electric powerplants that combine conventional engines with electric motors, generators, batteries, and proprietary controls to improve aircraft performance and efficiency. The conversation explores applications in military drones, cargo aviation, regional transportation, and next-generation aircraft architectures.
00:00 – Introduction and hybrid-electric propulsion overview
02:12 – How hybrid aircraft differ from hybrid cars
04:29 – Bartsch’s background and the origins of VerdeGo Aero
06:04 – Electric motors, distributed propulsion, and new aircraft architectures
09:06 – Military drones as the first major hybrid-electric market
12:19 – From defense adoption to civilian aviation
14:35 – VerdeGo’s commercial systems and engineering challenges
16:34 – Scaling hybrid-electric powerplants and current technology limits
19:00 – Power electronics, onboard electrical demand, and military applications
20:58 – The future of vertical takeoff and city-to-city aviation
24:05 – Cargo logistics as an early civilian market
26:05 – Lessons from the early battery-electric aircraft industry
29:44 – Why hybrid-electric propulsion may be a long-term solution
32:52 – FAA certification and pathways to commercial adoption
36:02 – Electrification, jet engines, and high-speed aircraft
38:29 – Emerging defense concepts and next-generation aviation
40:03 – Why aviation may be entering its biggest transformation in decades
