MOSES LAKE, Wash. — In September, the first all-electric passenger plane took off from Grant County's airport, and Tuesday, Gov. Jay Inslee took a seat in the cockpit.
"I could not be more thrilled,"Inslee said. "It'd be like sort of being at Kitty Hawk back in the day with the Wright brothers. That's the level of innovation folks are doing right here in central WA."
Eviation's electric plane could cut a four-hour car ride into a 45 minute plane trip, says president and CEO Gregory Davis.
"It's just going to," Davis said. "It can change an overnight trip into a day trip and makes travel that much more convenient and cleaner."
Inslee also saw another aviation advancement in the world's first hydrogen powered plane. But, there are barriers to advancing this technology in Washington.
"What we're looking for is things like improving the availability of electric power for the charging network," Davis said. "So, this is areas where Washington state with the WA state dot plan for the electric airport expansion and this can actually help boost the industry, making it easier for operators to come and start using electric planes."
"Might be kind of surprising, we need housing," Inslee said. "There might be a thousand new jobs associated with these three companies coming to Moses Lake. We need housing."
Inslee is pushing the state legislature to back a $4 billion bond to fund more housing.
"I'm trying to develop more zeroes to free up money for this type of thing," Inslee said.
Inslee says his office will also look at more federal dollars
"The inflation reduction act, as you know, is clean energy money too," Inslee said. "We can scrub that."
It's all to fund the future of flight taking off here in Grant County.
"When you look at Alice, what you're seeing is an aircraft that's going to be available for you or I to fly in a few years," Davis said.
Inslee also made stops at Big Bend Community College to talk batteries for electric cars and to speak with farm worker and immigration advocates.
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