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Company Is Planning To Develop The Largest Airplane In The World Powered By Hydrogen. The Model Will Have A Range Of 1,000 Km And Will Carry Up To 80 Passengers.
Alaska Airlines recently delivered to ZeroAvia, a company focused on hydrogen electric propulsion solutions, a Bombardier Q400 aircraft with a capacity for 76 passengers to be retrofitted with non-polluting technology, as promised a few years ago. The company can now move forward with its plans to test flights of the largest hydrogen-powered airplane in the world sooner than expected, due to advancements in modular engine systems.
ZeroAvia Plans Flights With Hydrogen-Powered Airplanes
ZeroAvia already holds 3 experimental certificates for prototype aircraft from the UK Civil Aviation Authority and the Federal Aviation Administration of the USA.
The company aims to sell hydrogen-powered airplanes starting in 2025, with a range of 482 km and a capacity of 9 to 19 passengers. It is already planning flights with larger airplanes capable of carrying 40 to 80 passengers and over 1000 km of range by 2027. The company has also received a Dornier 228 twin-engine aircraft in January of last year from Alaska Airlines.
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ZeroAvia had been expecting the delivery of the promised model from Alaska Airlines since October 2021. The company obtained permission to conduct flight tests in the UK. During the delivery ceremony, ZeroAvia showcased its testing platform with the hydrogen-powered airplane on the ground, called HyperTruck. The system consists of two modular HyperCore engine modules that operate at 20,000 RPM and generate an engine power density of 15 kW/kg.
The Largest Hydrogen-Powered Airplane In The World
The modularity of the HyperCore system design allows for zero-emission aviation applications ranging from 900 kW to 5.4 MW. ZeroAvia shared that the HyperCore system has the potential to power the Dash 8-400 electric airplane with 76 seats, possibly as early as next year.
This model will be the largest hydrogen-powered airplane in the world, and currently, this title belongs to the Hy Flyer, a Dornier Do 228 modified by ZeroAvia, which features two engines and 19 seats. The same company is also working on the conversion of a Cessna Caravan model, in partnership with Textron, to bring more hydrogen-powered airplanes to market.
Other Hydrogen Initiatives Around The World
The company Universal Hydrogen successfully conducted a test flight of a hydrogen-powered airplane in March. This is the largest passenger airplane to use clean fuel in its propulsion system to date.
The company plans to continue its two-year flight testing program to convert the regional ATR 72 airplane to use the fuel. It already has orders to convert 247 aircraft from 16 customers worldwide, totaling over US$ 1 billion in projects.
Connect Airlines, one of the company’s main clients, has already placed an order to convert 75 regional ATR 72-600 airplanes to hydrogen propulsion, with deliveries expected to be made by 2025. The company aims to become the first zero-emission airline in North America.
The Lightning McClean, a regional airplane for 40 passengers, took off from Grant County International Airport and flew for 15 minutes, reaching an altitude of 3,500 feet above sea level. The propulsion system is developed from specially modified fuel cells for use in the airplane.
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