A collaboration worth over a billion euros between Finland-based air mobility booking platform Lygg and Electra.aero will provide Lygg's operators with up to 300 hybrid aircraft from 2028.

With these aircraft alone, Lygg operators will be able to transport more than 10 million passengers per year, which is more than 60 per cent of Helsinki-Vantaa airport's total international traffic this year. Integrating eight to 14 seat hybrid aircraft into Lygg's business model will enable direct connections and the full use of renewable SAF on all flights, reducing CO2 emissions to just five per cent of conventional levels.

"We are primarily facilitators in this scenario, much like Uber which once offered cars to southeast Asian taxi drivers. The agreement combines Electra's revolutionary, already-in-use technology with Lygg's equally pioneering business model. Having followed Electra for a long time, we are convinced that it will be one of the leaders in this market. We, in turn, can offer a direct path to commercial business for its aircraft through our corporate customer network and operators," says CEO Roope Kekäläinen.

Lygg operates regional flights mainly at airports outside cities in Nordic and European travel markets and with aircraft of fewer than 34 seats, making it an ideal platform for operators like Electra. Electra's eSTOL needs only about 100 metres of paved or gravel surface to take off or land. Its current range is over 800 kilometres.

"The technology allows us to rewrite the definition of direct connections. Existing fields closer to city centres can be utilised more flexibly; in Lahti, for example, no additional pavement would be needed to start flight operations if Electra's aircraft were already in use there," continues Kekäläinen. "And the vision for the future is even more fascinating: a parking lot near a local factory could serve as an airport for Electra's needs. The renewal of European regulations could potentially free up up to 100,000 squares across Europe as new airports for the hybrid-as-a-service model. Large aircraft could not use these take off and landing locations, making them practically congestion-free."

The company claims that the introduction of hybrid aircraft will reduce its emissions to less than 10 per cent of conventional levels. Even with direct connections and aircraft sized between eight and 33 seats, emissions will be halved compared to alternative modes of travel. The carbon footprint will be further reduced by Lygg's decision last November to fully adopt SAF on all flights by the end of next year. With all these measures, emissions will be only a fraction of the carbon dioxide amount produced by alternative modes of travel, and the introduction of hybrid aircraft in a few years' time will enable a 95 per cent reduction in emissions.

"The agreement with Electra ensures that we are in a global pole position in the sustainable aviation revolution. With hybrid aircraft, emissions will decrease even further and their noise pollution is negligible. Direct connections become even more direct thanks to the hybrid-as-a-service model, reducing time spent in the air. From 2028 onwards, environmentally conscious business travellers shouldn't even consider getting into a car, not even carpooling," says Kekäläinen.

"Lygg is committed to meeting the rising demand of its passengers to travel with the smallest carbon footprint possible, and Electra is excited to help make that possible," says Electra chief product officer Marc Ausman. "Our climate-friendly hybrid eSTOL aircraft will fly regional distances at reduced operating costs that enable Lygg to serve existing city to city regional routes as well as open up valuable new destinations."