Aviation
Commercial /
Europe
Zero emission
ZeroAvia sets target for first hydrogen-powered passenger flight in 2024
Noah Buscher/Unsplash
Gabriela Ramos
10/29/2021
Although hydrogen and electric propulsion systems were widely heralded as the two main paths towards zero emission, there was still no set date. This issue has been resolved by hydrogen electric aircraft developer ZeroAvia, which announced last Wednesday, 27, that its focus will be on hydrogen-powered passenger flights between the UK and the Netherlands in 2024. regional hydrogen-powered flights in 2026.
Flights between London and Rotterdam will be operated by a 19-seat Dornier 228 aircraft, powered exclusively by hydrogen. The aircraft is currently under development at ZeroAvia's Kemble facility in the UK. According to the company, the preparation for flight tests at the Cotswolds airport is already “well advanced”.
The new 2024 schedule resulted from a partnership between ZeroAvia and the Royal Schiphol Group, which manages Rotterdam Airport. Although it has not yet been decided who will operate it on the first commercial flight, the two partners stated that they are already in advanced negotiations with the airlines.
Sergey Kiselev, ZeroAvia's head for Europe, said in a statement: “This agreement means that, in just three years, you will be able to board a flight and make the one-hour journey between the UK and the Netherlands without worrying about the impact on climate. Working with partners like the Royal Schiphol Group, we are making true zero-emission flights a reality for passengers in the first half of this decade.”
The two partner companies will test and demonstrate hydrogen supply chains and the integration of refueling with airport infrastructure and operations. In addition, they will develop a pathway for commercially operating hydrogen flights, including establishing a regulatory framework and understanding customer appeal.
In addition to partnering with the Royal Schiphol Group and founding Rotterdam Airport, ZeroAvia has also recently reached another important milestone: the company announced on Tuesday the contract it signed with Alaska Air Group, the parent company of Alaska Airlines , for the development of a power train for a 76-seat, zero-emission aircraft that could produce 600 kilowatts.
However, the company, along with Alaska Airlines engineers, will collaborate to scale the existing platform to create a family of engines capable of producing between 2,500 and 5,000 kilowatts of power with a 500-mile range, called ZA2000, which will be used on a Havilland Q400 aircraft operated by Horizon Air, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group. The company expects the start of operations in 2026.
Josuelsai Ramos Figueroa/Unsplash
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Gabriela Ramos
Gabriela is the latest addition to the editorial team of our website, having provided us with her solid background in editing, publishing and photography, and her interest and training in aviation history and historiography. His good taste and common sense and great cleverness and sagacity in the selection of themes and materials greatly enriched our vocabulary and narrative style. Gabriela brought unusual predicates and came to stay, helping to point the way of success of our portal.
   
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