The aviation industry’s global trade group (the International Air Transport Association) is telling people that its unlikely electric airplanes will be flying commercial routes before 2040. ZeroAvia, a fast-moving electric flight startup, is on a mission to prove them wrong. The Hollister, Calif.–based firm has already completed its first UK test flight of Europe’s largest emission-free electric aircraft. The six-seater hydrogen-powered Piper Malibu flew several trips from Cranfield Airport in Bedfordshire. The UK government-funded the project.
Val Miftakhov, ZeroAvia’s founder and chief executive, said:
This test flight is the latest in a series of milestones that moves the possibility of zero-emission flight closer to reality.
Right now, we have an aircraft that’s six seats and 2 tons as an R&D demonstrator. Next year we’ll have a 20-seat aircraft and we’ll submit the design for [Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)] certification. That’s what drives the 2022, 2023 timeline. At that point, we’re expecting to have certification and put the system into commercial service.
The company aims to have a version that seats 50-100 in the sky by the end of the decade.
When the manufacturer set out to find the best low-carbon option for regional flights, they realized that hydrogen fuel cells were the best choice, by far. For local trips, they need something with enough energy and power to fly a 10-20 seat aircraft about 500-800 kilometers. Hydrogen fuel cells could quickly meet those requirements. ZeroAvia came to this understanding in early 2018, and by February 2020, it had already assembled its 275-kilowatt test plane with FAA experimental flight certification.
ZeroAvia is not an airplane builder; it’s a powertrain manufacturer. So, it makes the engines and retrofits existing airplanes by removing the combustion engine and replacing it with its zero-emissions version. The company plans to eventually lease its powertrains and supply hydrogen fuel to airlines and aircraft manufacturers.
Miftakhov said:
We’re targeting power levels that are in use today and we are able to utilize the airframes that exist today, with minor modifications.
And not only will its powertrain slash carbon emissions, but it will dramatically cut costs for flights too within just three to four years. They claim it will reduce the price of a 500-mile short-haul trip to half of what it costs today. If the hydrogen is produced on-site at the airport, it can make the zero-emissions flight cheaper than burning jet fuel. Furthermore, an electric engine is more efficient and requires fewer repairs than a combustion engine.
According to a Forbes report, the aviation industry has the most potential to propel hydrogen into the mainstream as a transportation fuel. Hydrogen has outstanding energy density, and if used for airplanes, you don’t need to build a massive distribution network. By starting with aviation, refueling stations could be constructed at major airports first – which is a much less daunting task than having to build fueling stations for cars across the country.
As a bonus, zero-emissions aircraft grant a psychological advantage: that of guilt-free traveling. People can fly without shame and worry about causing climate change!
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