The world’s first fully electric plane has flown successfully for almost 15 minutes. The world’s first fully electric commercial aircraft took its first test flight on Tuesday, taking off from the Canadian city of Vancouver and offering hope that airlines may one day end their polluting emissions.
“This proves that commercial airmail in all-electric form can work,” said Roei Ganzarski, CEO of Seattle-based engineering firm MagniX. The company designed the plane’s motor and worked in partnership with Harbour Air, which carries half a million passengers a year between Vancouver, Whistler ski resort and nearby islands and coastal communities. Ganzarski said the technology would mean significant cost savings for airlines—not to mention zero emissions. “This signifies the start of the electric airmail age,” he told reporters.
Civil airmail is one of the fastest growing sources of carbon emissions as people increasingly take to the skies and new technologies have been slow to make remarkable progress. At 285 grammes of CO₂ emitted per kilometre (mile) travelled by each passenger, airline industry emissions far exceed those from all other transport, according to the European Environment Agency.
The e-plane—a 62-year-old, six-passenger DHC –2 de Havilland Beaver seaplane improved on with an electric motor—was piloted by Greg McDougall, founder and CEO of Harbour Air. “For me that flight was just like flying a Beaver, but it was a Beaver on electric steroids (电动兴奋剂). I actually had to turn off the power button,” he said. McDougall took the plane in a short circle along the Fraser River near Vancouver International Airport in front of around 100 onlookers soon after sunrise.
32. What can we know from the first fully electric plane’s success?
A. The flying time of e-plane is 15 minutes at most.
B. The fully electric commercial airmail has functioned.
C. Airlines may realize the goal of zero emissions.
D The fully electric plane never does damage to the environment.
33. What does the underlined word “signifies” in Paragraph 2 mean?
A. Means. B. Proves. C. Changes. D. Follows.
34. What is the main idea of Paragraph 3?
A. The pollution caused by passengers. B. The backward airmail technology.
C. The current situation of civil airmail. D. The growing sources of carbon emissions.
35. What is Greg McDougall’s attitude towards the successful e-plane?
A. Shocked. B. Positive. C. Doubtful. D. Objective.
【答案】32. C    33. A    34. C    35. B
【解析】
本文是说明文。主要介绍了全球首个电动飞机成功飞行的情况，这表明有一天飞机也许有希望结束污染排放。
【32题详解】
细节理解题。根据第一段内容可知，周二，世界上第一架全自动商业飞机进行首次飞行测试，从加拿大温哥华起飞，这表明有一天飞机也许有希望结束污染排放。因此可知，航空公司可能会实现零排放的目标。故选C。
【33题详解】
词句猜测题。画线词前的“Ganzarski said the technology would mean significant cost savings for airlines—not to mention zero emissions.”( 甘扎斯基说，这项技术将给航空公司省下巨额费用——更不用说零排放了）说明了这项技术的益处，结合画线词后的“the start of the electric airmail age”可推断此处是说这标志着航空邮件时代的开始。由此可知，画线词与mean“意味着”意思相近。故选A。
【34题详解】
主旨大意题。根据第三段内容可知，本段介绍民用航空是碳排放量增长最快的来源之一，因为人们越来越多地乘坐飞机出行，然而新技术进展缓慢。根据欧洲环境署，每位乘客每航行一公里（英里）就要排放285克二氧化碳，航空业的排放远超其他的交通形式。故本段主要讲述民用航空的现状。故选C。
【35题详解】
推理判断题。根据最后一段的“For me that flight was just like flying a Beaver, but it was a Beaver on electric steroids (电动兴奋剂). I actually had to turn off the power button,” he said.（他说“对我来说，这次飞行就像驾着海狸飞机一样，但那比海狸快得多。事实上，我不得不关闭电源）可推断，对于这次成功飞行的电动飞机他的态度是积极乐观的。故选B。