Le BOURGET, France — Moses Lake, Washington, will be the test site for a new hybrid-electric plane as part of an experiment that aims to make aircraft cleaner and more fuel efficient.

RTX, an aerospace conglomerate that includes engine maker Pratt & Whitney and aerospace and defense suppliers Collins Aerospace and Raytheon, has been developing the hybrid-electric plane since 2021. The project involves designing, building and testing a demonstration aircraft to prove that the idea works. The experimental aircraft will be a De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100 modified with new hybrid-electric technology.

On Monday, at the Paris Air Show, Pratt & Whitney Canada announced it would flight test the experimental hybrid plane in Moses Lake, through a partnership with Seattle-based AeroTec. AeroTec will integrate the new technology into the Dash 8-100 and then flight test the experimental plane.

With engineering offices in Seattle and flight-test capabilities at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, AeroTec says it is designed for these types of projects. It has the infrastructure and team in place to test projects for aerospace companies, reducing the expense and risk those companies would have to take on to perform the tests themselves.

AeroTec has helped test other sustainable aviation projects, including by participating in a NASA program to test electrified propulsion systems. Most recently, one of its testing projects didn't pan out. Universal Hydrogen, which had been developing a partially hydrogen-fueled plane that flew out of Moses Lake, folded last year.

The new project with Pratt & Whitney is a "clear example" of AeroTec's "mission ... to accelerate the evolution of aerospace," AeroTec President Justin Morigeau said in a written statement.

Pratt & Whitney expects the demonstrator could reduce emissions by 30%, compared with regional turboprop systems. Its demonstrator combines a thermal engine with an electric motor developed by Collins Aerospace.

Other companies, including Pratt's engine rival General Electric, are also working on variations of a hybrid-electric plane.

On Monday, Pratt & Whitney announced that it had tested its propulsion system and batteries to "full power," marking a milestone on its path to flight testing.

Michael Winter, chief scientist at RTX, told reporters at the Air Show there isn't a timeline for flight testing. There's no rush, Winter said, because the goal of the project is to learn.

"We're going to fly it when we're ready," Winter said. "We want to do it right and we want to do it carefully."

Pratt & Whitney Canada will continue ground testing for the plane in Quebec, the company said Monday.

©2025 The Seattle Times. Visit seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.