Richard Hammond and James May in Drivetribe video special
8 May 2025
TV presenters Richard Hammond and James May have pitched an electric Pipistrel Velis Electro aircraft against an electric Porsche Taycan car in a race that echoes past exploits on Top Gear and Grand Tour.
“It’s been a while since we did an absurd race,” James May said.
Starting at Henstridge Aerodrome in Somerset, the pair set off in their usual 3-2-1 radio countdown, launching down the runway. Richard immediately took the lead in the Taycan, turning off the runway, with James in the Velis Electro soon airborne.
Richard chose the fastest route by road, reminiscing of travelling to work during his time filming Top Gear, whilst James leisurely flew to Thruxton Race Circuit for lunch and a charging stop.
Both James and Richard arrive within minutes of each other at the finish line near ‘Gambon Corner’ at Dunsfold Airfield, the former home of Top Gear, with James admitting defeat.
The race came about when Aerovolt was secretly approached by DriveTribe and Porsche who had teamed up with Richard and James to help try and realise the idea.
The pair wanted to have a race between an electric car and an electric plane, only recently possible due to Aerovolt’s electric aircraft charging infrastructure that’s installed at numerous airports in the UK, including Henstridge and Thruxton.
James and Richard insisted the race was run 100% for real, with no special edits or trickery.
“We always ran them for real”, explained Richard in the film, “and what happens on the day happens on the day.”
Thruxton Race Circuit was chosen as the charging stop for the aircraft, where James uses Aerovolt’s Squadron charging system. The Taycan Turbo GT has 105 kWh battery with a range of 421 miles, whereas the Velis Electro had a 20 kWh battery with a 1 hour range or 100 miles (86 nautical miles).
Joining James for the flight was Aerovolt’s founder & CEO, Philip Kingsley-Dobson, who was there to assist with the aircraft.
“A lot of planning went into the race”, said Philip, “and on the day we battled wind and rain, as well as James enjoying his lunch longer than expected! But in the end, we arrived less than 10 minutes after Richard did in the Taycan”.
