All-electric Spirit of Innovation lays claim to world records

On 16 November 2021, Spirit of Innovation is claimed to have reached a top speed of 555.9km/h (345.4mph) over 3km, beating the existing record by 213.04 km/h (132mph).

Rolls-Royce added that further runs at the UK Ministry of Defence’s Boscombe Down experimental aircraft testing site saw the aircraft achieve 532.1km/h (330mph) over 15km – 292.8km/h (182mph) faster than the previous record – and broke the fastest time to climb to 3000m by 60 seconds with a time of 202 seconds.

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During its runs, Spirit of Innovation achieved a maximum speed of 623km/h (387.4mph) which according to Rolls-Royce makes the ‘Spirit of Innovation’ the world’s fastest all-electric vehicle.

“Flying the ‘Spirit of Innovation’ at these incredible speeds and believing we have broken the world record for all-electric flight is a momentous occasion,” said Phill O’Dell, former test pilot and Rolls-Royce director of Flight Operations. “This is the highlight of my career and is an incredible achievement for the whole team. The opportunity to be at the forefront of another pioneering chapter of Rolls-Royce’s story as we look to deliver the future of aviation is what dreams are made of.”