> With superconductors just in the rotor coils, the motor will achieve efficiencies in the range of 98 to 99.5 percent, which is about four or five percentage points higher than what is realistically possible with a permanent-magnet synchronous motor.

Just between the vacuum chambers and the cryogenics, I'm thinking their new motor would add a whole lot of failure modes for that 4% or 5% gain. Then there's the learning curve - which starts with the engineers trying to design the engine mountings, management & control systems, and cockpit controls.

It'd be interesting to hear what Admiral Cloudberg thinks of this idea.