On June 24, the firm’s “first-of-its-kind” hydrogen-electric, vertical takeoff and landing (hVTOL) demonstrator completed a 532 sm (462 nm) flight—about the distance between San Francisco and San Diego—above Marina, California, home to the Joby’s test facility and pilot production line. The aircraft landed with more than 10 percent of its hydrogen fuel remaining, with water the only byproduct of the flight.

Joby believes the test, which included a vertical take off and landing, represented the first forward flight for a liquid hydrogen-powered eVTOL aircraft. The company said hydrogen is a key piece of its future plans.

“We’re excited to now be building a technology stack that could redefine regional travel using hydrogen-electric aircraft,” said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby. “Imagine being able to fly from San Francisco to San Diego, Boston to Baltimore, or Nashville to New Orleans, without the need to go to an airport and with no emissions except water. That world is closer than ever.”

The development signals a shift in Joby’s stated business philosophy, which before Thursday was centered around flying urban air mobility (UAM) routes within cities.

In a blog post penned by Bevirt and Raffaele Russo, business manager for new technologies at Joby, the company’s top brass said regional air mobility (RAM) is also on the agenda. The firm has alluded to a regional service before, but Thursday’s developments appear to confirm that one is in the works.

“Although the specific energy of batteries is improving, their weight will continue to limit the application of electric aircraft to short-distance travel,” the blog post reads. “To serve regional markets, we plan to use hydrogen to increase the potential range and payload of electric aircraft.”

Joby’s hydrogen-electric program builds on the technology developed by its subsidiary H2FLY, acquired in secret in 2021.

The manufacturer built the hydrogen-electric demonstrator by modifying one of its battery-electric aircraft, which has already flown more than 25,000 miles, with a hydrogen fuel tank capable of storing up to 40 kilograms of liquid, supercooled hydrogen. It includes a smaller battery cell, which provides extra power during takeoff and landing.

The design employs the same airframe and overall architecture as its battery-electric counterpart. It will use the same takeoff and landing sites and operations team, as well as ElevateOS—a proprietary, Uber-like software suite unveiled in June.

ElevateOS comprises a pilot app, rider app, operations suite, and matching system that connects riders with aircraft based on departure time, arrival time, and location. It includes an integration with the Uber app, allowing Uber customers to book Joby flights and vice versa.

The hydrogen-powered model also includes the H2F-175 hydrogen fuel cell, built by H2FLY, which produces electricity and heat with water as the sole byproduct. The fuel cell powers the aircraft’s six electric motors, which feed into tilting propellers that assist in both hover and forward flight, and charges the batteries while they are deactivated in cruise mode.

The technology was deployed about one year ago during a milestone H2FLY flight, which Joby claims was the first crewed flight of a hydrogen-electric aircraft with a runway takeoff.

According to Joby’s estimate, the hydrogen-electric model will have a greater payload than a battery-electric design or an aircraft using an equivalent amount of jet fuel.

Bevirt is also bullish on hydrogen production, pointing to the U.S. Department of Energy’s $7 billion investment in clean “hydrogen hubs.” He noted that hydrogen can be produced using a variety of low- or zero-emission sources such as wind or water power, which could help the aviation industry meet commitments to eliminate emissions by 2050.

“We recognize that broadly commercializing hydrogen will require doing the hard miles on regulation and infrastructure, along with fuel storage and distribution, but we have demonstrated that regional hydrogen-electric flight is possible today,” Bevirt and Russo wrote in Thursday’s blog post.

Bevirt said the bulk of the work Joby has done to certify its flagship, battery-electric air taxi will carry over to commercializing a hydrogen-electric variant. The company’s hydrogen-electric activities are supported by Agility Prime, the vertical lift technology division of the U.S. Air Force innovation arm, AFWERX.

“Agility Prime has been very supportive of hydrogen-powered aircraft development and testing as it aligns with the program’s goals to advance transformative vertical lift technologies and broader Department of Defense operational energy goals of energy substitution and diversification, and energy demand reduction,” said Jacob Wilson, acting branch chief of Agility Prime.

Joby is also collaborating with AFWERX’s Autonomy Prime division, which, as the name implies, develops self-flying aircraft.

The company in June acquired autonomous flight company Xwing for an undisclosed fee and intends to build a self-flying version of its flagship air taxi in the future, using Xwing’s Superpilot software. U.S. competitor Wisk Aero and Chinese eVTOL manufacturer EHang are among the handful of firms looking to fly autonomous air taxis at launch.

Joby aims to launch commercial operations with its flagship battery-electric air taxi in 2025, in partnership with Delta Air Lines. New York and Los Angeles are slated as the company’s first U.S. markets.

The aircraft is designed for a pilot to fly as many as four passengers on trips up to 100 sm (87 nm), cruising at 200 mph (174 knots). In the U.S., Joby will operate the model itself.

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The company showcased its Sirius CEO-Jet and Sirius Adventure Jet—the initial entrants into what it claims will be the first family of hydrogen-powered, zero-emission, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capable aircraft—on Thursday at the Move Expo in London.

The models will be powered by a hydrogen-electric powertrain and fuel tank—a propulsion system designed to extend flight time compared to fully electric models. Similar to the Lilium Jet, the aircraft will feature electric ducted fans embedded in fixed wings and canards to provide vertical lift.

Both the CEO-Jet and Adventure Jet are expected to emit less than 60 dBA of noise at a distance of 100 meters—about the volume of a typical conversation—using what Sirius describes as a “deflected vectored thrust” propulsion system. The company claims they will reduce noise by about 95 percent compared to helicopters.

The CEO-Jet, designed to seat three passengers, will serve the private business aviation segment, combining zero-emission flight with luxurious, customizable amenities.

The Adventure Jet, on the other hand, is designed primarily for passenger and cargo transport but can also handle medical evacuations, search and rescue, firefighting, surveillance, and offshore operations. It seats up to two pilots and as many as five passengers, with a maximum takeoff weight of about 7,700 pounds, handling point-to-point trips to remote destinations such as jungles or mountaintops. It will even have an inflatable pontoon, allowing it to glide over water.

The latter design comes equipped with GPS, Doppler radar, very high frequency (VHF) and ultra high frequency (UHF) radio, and a digital autopilot system capable of hover and approach.

“The CEO-JET offers an eco-friendly option for business travel, while the Adventure Jet opens new horizons for global tourism and exploration,” said Alexey Popov, CEO of Sirius.

Founded in 2021, Sirius set out to design an aircraft that could combine the aerodynamics of an airplane with the versatility of a helicopter. The concept for a family of hydrogen-powered business jets first emerged in January, and the company shared more information in the weeks leading up to Move Expo.

The Sirius Jet’s calling card is its propulsion system—a hydrogen-electric powertrain that energizes 28 electric ducted fans, 20 embedded in the wings and eight mounted in the canard. Together with a pressurized cabin, these fans are designed to help the aircraft reach an altitude of 30,000 feet.

The fans are linked individually to one of 28 electric motors, each weighing about 21 pounds and containing a proprietary thermal management system. Air drawn through the jet’s intake passes through a cooling system and into onboard liquid hydrogen tanks. It is then channeled to a fuel cell stack, which has a high weight-to-power density ratio ideal for storing hydrogen.

Within the fuel cell, hydrogen and oxygen react to create water and electricity, the latter of which is directed to a set of battery packs that power the electric motors. The packs recharge during flight, are active for only 90 seconds per flight cycle, and do not need to be replaced, Sirius says. Water, a byproduct, is released through the exhaust valve.

By Sirius’ estimate, it would cost only $500 to fully refill the fuel tank. The company further claims the propulsion system makes its aircraft more efficient than electric VTOL (eVTOL) counterparts.

The Lilium Jet, for example, has a range of about 155 sm (135 nm); the Sirius CEO-Jet will max out at around 1,150 sm (1,000 nm), while the Adventure Jet can reach that range using its additional fuel tanks. Further, the CEO-Jet’s cruise speed and Adventure Jet’s top speed—323 mph (280 knots)—is more than double the Lilium Jet’s (155 mph, or 135 knots).

A potential CEO-Jet network in the U.S. could encompass New York City, Chicago, Kansas City, Missouri, New Orleans, and Miami. The Adventure Jet, meanwhile, could connect San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Phoenix. According to Sirius, the network would offer “a 4-[time] improvement in travel efficiency compared to conventional methods” such as car or traditional airplane.

At the same time, the hydrogen-powered aircraft are billed as offering the luxury of a conventional business jet. Customers have the option, for example, to customize interior colors, upholstery, amenities—including champagne fridges, custom bathrooms, art installations, and kitchens—lighting, and flooring materials such as marble, hardwood, or carpet. Passengers can even pick the scent they smell when they enter the aircraft.

Both models are equipped with an airframe parachute system that deploys automatically in case of emergency, which Sirius claims reduces risk to “virtually zero.”

Sirius hopes to set up serial manufacturing and obtain certification for the Sirius Jet family before 2028. Next year, it expects to complete an inaugural flight using a demonstration plane and open sales of 50 business jets, with deliveries beginning in 2028. By the end of the decade, it intends to launch a shuttle network across the Americas, European Union, and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

So far, Sirius has received an order from Indian seaplane operator Mehair for 50 Adventure Jets plus 50 options, with another from Indonesian tourism firm Parq Development for five CEO-Jets and Adventure Jets apiece.

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According to the company, the test results indicate the new engine will have applications in  multiple markets in addition to aviation, such as commercial power applications, defense platforms, and zero-emission vehicles.

“Environmental responsibility is a foundational pillar of our company” said Christopher Ruud, CEO of DeltaHawk. “In the general aviation industry, our family of engines are creating a highly reduced net-carbon footprint coupled with airborne lead removal, thanks in large part to their fuel efficiency and capability to burn next-generation sustainable aviation fuels [SAFs]. Now with our planned ability to expand our engine family to include variants that will utilize hydrogen fuel in aviation, commercial, and military applications, we’ve taken another major step toward environmental sustainability, climate neutrality, and a zero-emissions future.”

• READ MORE: DeltaHawk Gains Type Certification on Jet-Fueled Piston Powerplant

About the Company

Since its founding in 1996, DeltaHawk said it has been striving to create a cleaner, more efficient, engine for the GA market. The company holds numerous patents for its clean-sheet engine designs.

According to the company, the use of proven internal combustion engine (ICE) technology with hydrogen fuel replaces more expensive, highly infrastructure-reliant fuel cell systems. That allows for a significantly reduced power degradation curve over time compared to current fuel cell technology, providing better fuel economy than fuel cells after the initial period.

DeltaHawk said its compact, lightweight, and durable design, based on patented two-stroke technology, makes this new engine family an ideal solution for hydrogen fuel. 

More information on the company website is available here.

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Joby subsidiary H2Fly on Thursday revealed it completed piloted flights of its four-seater HY4 demonstrator powered by liquid hydrogen, a milestone it says is the world’s first. The company made four takeoffs from an airfield in Maribor, Slovenia, using cryogenically stored liquid hydrogen to power a hydrogen-electric fuel cell system, which kept the aircraft in the sky for over three hours on one occasion.

Prior to this week’s tests, H2Fly had only flown with pressurized gaseous hydrogen. It said switching to the liquid form of the fuel source will double the HY4’s range from about 405 to 810 nm, a promising sign for a company that hopes to supply hydrogen-electric powertrains for zero-emissions medium- and long-haul commercial flights.

JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby, has repeatedly touted the benefits of hydrogen, hinting at the company’s desire to explore it as a fuel source. The company has no stated plans to integrate hydrogen fuel cells on its air taxi, but Bevirt gave its subsidiary some praise.

“H2Fly are pioneers in their field, and we’re proud of them achieving this watershed moment in the use of liquid hydrogen to power aircraft,” he said in a statement. “In the years to come, battery-electric and hydrogen-electric propulsion systems will enable us to build aircraft that are quieter and make mid- to long-range air travel possible with zero emissions. It’s critical we take action now and invest aggressively in these technologies for the health of our planet and future generations to come.”

The flight test campaign marked the culmination of Project HEAVEN, a European government-backed consortium created to explore the use of cryogenic liquid hydrogen in aircraft. H2Fly led the project, which also included partner Air Liquide, Pipistrel Vertical Solutions, and the German Aerospace Center. The tests were also funded by a pair of German federal ministries and the University of Ulm.

“This achievement marks a watershed moment in the use of hydrogen to power aircraft,” said Professor Josef Kallo, co-founder of H2Fly. “Together with our partners, we have demonstrated the viability of liquid hydrogen to support medium and long-range emissions-free flight. We are now looking ahead to scaling up our technology for regional aircraft and other applications, beginning the critical mission of decarbonizing commercial aviation.”

Compared to the pressurized gaseous hydrogen H2Fly used prior to these flights, the cryogenically stored liquid form has a higher energy density, enabling a lower tank weight and volume. That boosts the range and payload of the aircraft. Hydrogen fuel cells also produce electricity without combustion or emission and do not need to be recharged so long as they’re fed a supply of hydrogen and oxygen.

“Today’s success demonstrates the full potential of liquid hydrogen for aviation,” said Pierre Crespi, innovation director at Air Liquide, which designed, manufactured, and integrated the liquid hydrogen tank that powered the HY4. “Liquid hydrogen can be stored onboard and transported. Hydrogen is key to the energy transition and this new step proves that it’s already becoming a reality.”

With HEAVEN flight testing complete, H2Fly says it is now focused on the path to commercialization. The company recently announced a new H2F-175 fuel cell system—capable of providing a full power range at altitudes up to 27,000 feet—which it hopes will prove there are real-world applications for the technology beyond low-altitude demonstrations.

H2Fly will also open a Hydrogen Aviation Center, co-funded by the Ministry of Transport Baden-Württemberg, at Stuttgart Airport (EDDS) next year. One day, the center may provide fuel cell aircraft integration facilities and liquid hydrogen infrastructure to large swaths of the European aviation industry.

The Promises and Pitfalls of Hydrogen

Incredibly, the HY4 made its maiden voyage over half a decade ago in 2016. In April 2022, it set what H2Fly believes to be the altitude record for a hydrogen-powered aircraft, cruising at over 7,200 feet. Around the same time, HY4 completed a cross-country flight from Stuttgart Airport to Friedrichshafen Airport (EDNY) 77 sm (67 nm) away, the first for a hydrogen-powered passenger airplane between two commercial airports.

A few months prior to this week’s piloted test, H2Fly and Air Liquide also conducted on-ground coupling tests of an aircraft-integrated liquid hydrogen storage system, which validated the Joby subsidiary’s ability to install its architecture.

Looking ahead, H2Fly hopes to add hydrogen-electric propulsion to the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) CS-23 and CS-25 category aircraft. It has a partnership with Deutsche Aircraft to fly a 40-seat Dornier 328 demonstrator equipped with its fuel cell system in 2025.

But what will come of all this innovation?

H2Fly isn’t the only firm exploring hydrogen fuel systems; industry titan Airbus is also looking into applications for the technology, including a hydrogen-powered turbine engine. Another firm, ZeroAvia, is also in the mix, having recently flown the largest aircraft to be powered by a hydrogen engine, a 19-seat Dornier 228 demonstrator.

The firms have all been gripped by the allure of hydrogen, which is expected to greatly reduce emissions and help operators reach their ESG goals. It could also extend the range and payload of an aircraft, opening up new markets and use cases. But all that glitters is not gold, detractors say, poking a few holes in the hydrogen argument.

Some, like CleanTechnica’s Michael Barnard, worry the fuel source will be green but not cheap. As an example, he pointed to an effort by Air Liquide and others to establish a liquid hydrogen manufacturing facility for maritime shipping—that venture failed because of high production costs. Others point out that while hydrogen is environmentally friendly, its production often creates staggering emissions of its own, calling into question how “green” it truly is.

Liquid hydrogen in particular can also be difficult, costly, or even dangerous to transport. It requires specialized packaging to combat its high combustibility and may necessitate either an extensive logistics network or the construction of manufacturing sites near airfields. Neither option is ideal.

Further, there are some design and safety concerns around storing liquid hydrogen fuel near passengers. It needs to be kept in ball-shaped tanks that are as large as possible to prevent the liquid from boiling off, which creates challenges when designing an aircraft that also carries people.

Still, liquid hydrogen has the potential to curtail in-flight emissions (the ones that actually appear on company ESG reports) and, if the technology evolves as expected, open new business opportunities for operators. However, the industry will need to solidify the pipeline and limit hydrogen manufacturing costs and emissions before it becomes a viable alternative.

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ZeroAvia will obtain a supplemental type certificate (STC) to retrofit the Grand Caravan with its ZA600 zero-emission powertrain. This would allow the company to target commercial passenger and cargo operators to adopt its powerplant solution, which it says will be more environmentally friendly and quieter than conventional propeller-driven aircraft.

Val Miftakhov, the founder and CEO of the UK and U.S.-based company, expressed enthusiasm for this expanded partnership with Textron Aviation, providing a platform for his company to test and launch its products.

“The famous Cessna Grand Caravan is on track to be one of the first airframes operating commercial services—both cargo and passenger—with hydrogen-electric, zero-emission engines,” Miftakhov said. “We applaud the visionary leadership of Textron Aviation in joining us to help transform a much-loved mainstay of sub-regional aviation into a symbol of a sustainable transformation in aviation.”

Expanding Partnership Network

This partnership with Textron Aviation joins the network of other aircraft OEMs and operators that have committed to using ZeroAvia’s powertrain technology for future purposes. The company plans to build the ZA600 hydrogen-electric powerplant that targets 9- to 19-seat aircraft operating over a 300-nm mission by 2025. After that, it wants to launch a higher-powered engine, the ZA2000. 

A pair of the ZA2000s will allow a 40- to 80-seat aircraft to fly cargo and passengers up to 700-nm and be operational by 2027, the company said.

• READ MORE: ZeroAvia to Retrofit CRJ Series Regional Jets with Hydrogen-Electric Powertrains

So far, ZeroAvia has partnered with Dornier to retrofit a 19-seat Do 228 with its powerplant. That is taking place at the ZeroAvia R&D location at the Cotswold Airport (EGBP) in the UK, and the company said in its statement that it hopes to make test flights in a matter of weeks.

Every Expert Isn’t Sold on Hydrogen–Yet 

Though some energy stakeholders question the viability of hydrogen-electric powertrains to significantly reduce carbon emissions compared to alternatives like sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), ZeroAvia says its project is a “practical, holistic, and economically attractive solution to aviation’s growing climate change impact.” The engines use fuel cells to generate electricity, which powers electric motors to turn the propeller(s). ZeroAvia says hydrogen-electric systems produce only water vapor as a by-product at temperatures that enable the management of contrails.

• READ MORE: How Green Is Hydrogen Fuel?

In order to reduce emissions to meet an industry-touted 2050 net-zero goal, SAF would be needed to cut up to 65 percent of emissions, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in a study released last October. Electric and hydrogen solutions would only contribute 13 percent to the desired reduction, the report said. However, it is essential to note that according to the International Energy Agency, at present, operators globally use less than 0.1 percent of SAF, because it remains in short supply. Therefore, if ZeroAvia can meet its deadline—though it supposedly has a smaller market share—its solution could be more immediate. 

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Airbus Americas chairman and CEO Jeff Knittel said the flight test aircraft will be a modified Airbus A380—currently the world’s largest passenger airliner—equipped with four liquid hydrogen tanks that will fuel a GE Passport turbofan engine located along the rear fuselage of the aircraft.

The overall flight test plan is still being determined, Airbus said, but current plans call for the first flight of the demonstrator by the end of 2026. Final technology choices should be made by the end of the decade, the company said, in time for a new zero-emissions aircraft to enter the market by the 2035 goal.

Tuesday’s announcement is the latest development in Airbus’ initiative aimed at exploring the potential of hydrogen as an alternative fuel in hopes of pushing the aviation industry closer to net-zero carbon emissions. It’s part of a larger movement across all aviation sectors being driven by the threat of global climate change.  

A U.S.-European Partnership

Along with Airbus, the hydrogen demonstrator partnership includes CFM International, which is  jointly owned by GE Aviation and Safran Aircraft Engines.

“By leveraging the expertise of American and European engine manufacturers to make progress on hydrogen combustion technology, this international partnership sends a clear message that our industry is committed to making zero-emission flight a reality,” said Airbus chief technical officer Sabine Klauke. 

The A380’s liquid hydrogen tanks will be developed at Airbus facilities in France and Germany. Airbus will define the hydrogen propulsion system requirements, oversee flight testing, and provide the actual A380 platform to test the hydrogen combustion engine in cruise phase. 

For its part, CFM International will modify the combustor, fuel system, and control system of the GE Passport turbofan to run on hydrogen. 

Airbus said the engine, which is assembled in the United States, was selected for this program because of its physical size, advanced turbo machinery, and fuel flow capability. Plans call for it to be mounted along the rear fuselage of the A380 so engine emissions, including contrails, can be monitored separately, apart from the conventional engines powering the testbed. 

CFM is expected to execute an extensive ground test program ahead of the A380 flight test. “Hydrogen combustion capability is one of the foundational technologies we are developing and maturing as part of the CFM RISE Program,” said Gaël Méheust, president and CEO of CFM. “Bringing together the collective capabilities and experience of CFM, our parent companies, and Airbus, we really do have the dream team in place to successfully demonstrate a hydrogen propulsion system.”

Plans Have Been in the Works

The news of Airbus’ decision to move forward with its zero-emissions project comes as no surprise. It has been hinting at such plans for months. Reports surfaced late last year that Airbus was planning to test fly an existing CFM International engine converted for hydrogen propulsion. When FLYING asked Airbus to verify those reports, the company did not deny them and would only say they often perform developmental engine testing with powerplant manufacturers.

The announcement comes almost 18 months after Airbus unveiled its so-called ZEROe hydrogen concept airliner designs: a turbofan, a turboprop, and a blended-wing body.

Airbus has also been collaborating for months with hydrogen producers and publicly expressing confidence about the fuel’s viability.

The A380 Demonstrator 

During an online event Tuesday unveiling the announcement, Airbus offered a video tour of the specific aircraft that will be used as the testbed. The A380 that will eventually be developed into the testbed will be MSN 1, Airbus’s first-built A380, which served for certification and testing during the birth of the A380 program. MSN 1 also served as a testbed for engines used in Airbus’s A350 program. 

On the flight deck of the demonstrator, pilots will be managing power to the hydrogen engine with a separate throttle, Airbus said. They also will have a display that specifically monitors the main KPIs for the entire system. Data will be fed via telemetry in real time to engineers on the ground for analysis.  

Net Zero by 2050

The issue driving all of this is carbon emissions. Civil aviation creates about 2 percent of all carbon emissions, worldwide. Many of the world’s largest airlines have already committed to reducing their fleets to net-zero emissions by 2050, if not sooner, including Air France, American Airlines, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, Lufthansa, Southwest, and others.

United Airlines and Alaska Air Group have already invested significantly toward research and development of hydrogen-powered aircraft.

Blended-Wing Less Likely?

During an hydrogen aviation fuel webinar in October 2021, Airbus vice president of zero-emission aircraft Glenn Llewellyn offered additional hints of Tuesday’s announcement. Of Airbus’ three ZEROe concepts, he said the blended-wing body was less likely to be developed. 

“It’s much more likely that we would have a turbofan or turboprop—a more classical tube and weight configuration in terms of aircraft concept—nonetheless with a disruptively different propulsion system,” Llewellyn said.

Types of Hydrogen Power Systems 

Engineers have been considering multiple ways to use hydrogen fuel to power airplanes, including hydrogen fuel cells, hydrogen gas turbines that burn hydrogen, and hybrid combinations, Llewellyn said. 

• READ MORE: How Green Is Hydrogen Fuel?

Hydrogen gas turbines power engines with internal combustion, similar to traditional combustion engines that burn jet-A. Unlike traditional combustion engines, hydrogen burns cleanly.

Hydrogen Design Hurdles 

Hydrogen powered aircraft require fuel tanks large enough to carry the amount of liquid hydrogen needed for standard short- and medium-haul routes. Hydrogen packs more energy by weight than jet fuel, but it has lower energy by density. At room temperature hydrogen is a gas, making it difficult to store in large quantities. 

There’s an additional factor. Storing it in fuel tanks aboard aircraft requires hydrogen to be compressed into liquid form. To do that, hydrogen must be cooled to extremely low temperatures. In addition to the fuel and fuel tanks, the equipment needed to keep hydrogen fuel at low temperatures would add even more weight to a hydrogen-fueled aircraft. 

And because any added weight on an aircraft is a disadvantage, it’s always a key factor in any design. 

Cryogenic Fuel Delivery System

To deal with the challenges presented by hydrogen fuel, Airbus said Tuesday it intends to develop a new cryogenic fuel delivery system to move hydrogen from the tanks to the turbofan engine. First, the hydrogen needs to be converted from liquid to gas. Next, the hydrogen gas will be injected into the fuel combustor and then ignited at a very high temperature—much hotter than jet-A.

[Press Release] CFM and @Airbus to pioneer #hydrogen combustion technology by signing an agreement to work together on a hydrogen demonstration program that will take flight around the middle of this decade. #ClearAmbition https://t.co/l2qLc3hhyc@SafranEngines @GEAviation pic.twitter.com/1gfMXirffz

— CFM International (@CFM_engines) February 22, 2022

Newly developed components will be needed to withstand those high temperatures, the company said. 

Another Challenge: Creating Infrastructure

Developing the ecosystem and surrounding infrastructure to support wide-scale use of liquid hydrogen as an aviation fuel is a gigantic hurdle that experts point to as key to success. Production, storage, and delivery would all have to be scaled up. To transform the entire hydrogen fuel ecosystem to fully “green” would make this goal even more challenging. 

The Soviet Hydrogen Jet 

This isn’t the first push to create a hydrogen-fueled airliner. In the late 1980s, Soviet engineers developed the experimental Tupolev Tu-155, which completed about 100 test flights before the program was canceled during the collapse of the Soviet Union. 

Difficult Path Ahead

“Sustainable aviation is the future and hydrogen is an important step in that process, and maybe the ultimate step,” Knittel said Tuesday. 

Méheust acknowledged there’s a lot of work to be done. “But it doesn’t seem to be insurmountable…we see the technological path to achieve that. And with effort and hard work we should be able to make it.”

Yes, the goals are very challenging, said GE Aviation vice president Mohamed Ali. “But that’s what we’re all about. And we’re not doing them just because they are hard…we’re doing them because we actually believe we can invent the future of flight. And it’s safe. And it’s affordable. And it’s sustainable.”

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Israel-based aerospace company Urban Aeronautics says it has secured $10 million for the continued development of its CityHawk eVTOL aircraft.

The company, founded in 2006, is currently raising a Series A round of at least $100 million. The funds announced Tuesday came from private investors from the U.S., Brazil, and Israel.

About The Aircraft

CityHawk is a wingless, car-sized eVTOL aircraft that features a fully enclosed rotor system and is designed to complete multiple trips within a city per day with zero emissions and minimal noise. It is intended for commercial air charters and emergency medical services.

The company says the aircraft will be fueled by hydrogen, and in June 2020, announced it had partnered with California-based Hypoint to adapt hydrogen fuel cell technology for aviation.

In July, Urban said it had completed successful test flights for the company’s tech demonstrator. The company also says it has already received pre-orders from Hatzolah Air for four CityHawk eVTOLs for ambulance use.

“While we know that the vigorous testing and regulatory compliance that comes with any new aviation technology is still in development across the globe,” said Urban Aeronautics CEO Nimrod Golan-Yanay in a statement, “we are extremely excited and bolstered by the milestones we’ve achieved in recent months that show how ideally suited CityHawk is for practical applications right within the city itself.”

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ZeroAvia’s Piper M-class demonstrator—developed to test flight on hydrogen power—suffered an off-airport landing on April 29, 2021, just outside of the perimeter of the Cranfield airport in the UK. The aircraft was conducting a routine flight within the latter stages of its six-seat HyFlyer testing regime—which was expected to conclude in the next few weeks—recorded as ZeroAvia Test 86, the sixth test flight within the current segment of the program, according to a statement by the company. “The aircraft landed normally on its wheels in a flat grass field and almost came to a stop, but was damaged as it caught the left main gear and wing in the uneven terrain at the end of the field at low speed. Everybody involved is safe, and without injury. The incident was immediately reported to the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), and the Fire Service attended on the ground, as is the standard procedure.”

ZeroAvia reported the current known facts regarding the incident: “The flight conformed to the approved test route over the airport; the structural integrity of ZeroAvia systems was maintained throughout the incident sequence and there were no unintended hydrogen or electrical releases and no fire; after the landing, the crew were able to safeguard the battery and safely release hydrogen from the onboard tanks, following ZeroAvia safety protocol; no fluid leaks were observed at the time; and full data logs were preserved and will be used in our investigation.” There was no response from the company at press time as to what led to the landing in the field, whether it was the result of a power loss, loss of control, or other emergency situation.

The six-seat HyFlyer test platform had been based at the Cranfield airport since shortly after the company obtained significant funding from UK Aerospace Research and Technology program, under the auspices of the Aerospace Technology Institute in September 2019. The company addressed the impact to the testing program as well, stating that the accident investigation “will undoubtedly disrupt our six-seat HyFlyer demonstration program that was coming to an end in the following weeks. However, we do not expect any negative impact on our commercial-intent HyFlyer 2 program targeting 10 to 20 seat aircraft, or our large-engine development program targeting 50-plus seat aircraft.”

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