You can buy an electric car. Ideally, we'll soon start seeing the wonderful powers of electricity—and all the clean benefits associated with it—hitting the trucking industry as well. So why not a plane?

As reported by The New York Times, NASA is officially developing an experimental electric airplane that could help cut operational costs by 40 percent or so compared to a similarly sized, jet-fuel-guzzling aircraft. The plane itself could also be a quieter than a traditional aircraft. But before you start dreaming of all the comforts a Tesla-style plane might bring to flying, know that there are a few key issues that researchers still have to work out.

First up, batteries take up a lot of space. So much so, that the X-57 plane NASA is currently developing will require around 800 pounds of batteries or so just to work. Stuffing these in the plane requires NASA to eliminate all seats but the pilot's. And even with all that juice, the plane can allegedly only fly for about one hour or so—and you definitely don't want to be stuck in a holding pattern when the batteries go out.

NASA's initial research would only really benefit smaller aircraft at first: commuter planes or aircraft for general aviation, not huge, sprawling jetliners that run coast-to-coast flights. That's not to say that the technology couldn't get there someday, but don't expect that NASA's work will allow millions to start flying on electric planes over the next few years.

"With the return of piloted X-planes to NASA's research capabilities – which is a key part of our 10-year-long New Aviation Horizons initiative – the general aviation-sized X-57 will take the first step in opening a new era of aviation," said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, in a statement.

Unlike earlier X-Planes NASA designed, the new all-electric concept will use skinnier wings and 14 motors in total. Two of these motors, driving five-foot-wide propellers, will mainly be used to maintain an average cruising speed of around 175 miles per hour. The others will kick in to assist the plane with takeoffs and landings.

"NASA's aeronautical innovators hope to validate the idea that distributing electric power across a number of motors integrated with an aircraft in this way will result in a five-time reduction in the energy required for a private plane to cruise at 175 mph," reads NASA's description.