And that kind of flight profile is truly the only reason electric planes are can ever be worth any consideration. Even in an all-electric future (e.g. one with abundant fusion power), long distance flights would be served by burning synthetic fuels.

For those short electric hops, how much of the total battery capacity required would already be used up at liftoff? Maybe catapults/winches/detachable power tethers could make a real difference here?