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Had another random thought today. I was reading up on the future of aviation, and ran across Airbus's E-Jet-X, which is a BAE-146 with one engine replaced by an electric fan. Which got me to thinking...
What if instead of the all or nothing approach to replacing jet engines (Planes will either be all electric, or all jet), they released a hybrid? Maybe have 1 or two jet engines on the tail that in normal circumstances operate at 50% or so thrust at all times, and 2 or more electric fans on the wings that provide the majority of the thrust. The regular jets can also turn generators that charge batteries and power the wing motors. In an emergency, ie: loss of the jets, the batteries can power the electric motors long enough to land at the nearest airport, or if the electric motors fail, the jets can be run up to 100% thrust to get the plane to the nearest airport. IT definitely would be more fuel efficient than a full jet aircraft, and probably cheaper than a full electric aircraft.
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