Rolls-Royce tested the first hydrogen-powered jet engine late last year, and now, ZeroAvia’s 19-seat Dornier 228 hydrogen aircraft has successfully completed its maiden voyage. It’s currently the world’s largest hydrogen aircraft and was retrofitted with ZeroAvia’s hydrogen-electric engine on its left wing, which works alongside a single Honeywell TPE-331 stock engine on the right. The hydrogen-electric powertrain consists of two fuel cell stacks, with lithium-ion battery packs providing peak power support during take-off and adding additional redundancy for safe testing.
On this prototype, the hydrogen tanks and fuel cell power generation systems were housed inside the cabin, while the commercial configuration would use external storage, retaining the interior seats. It flew for 10-minutes at ZeroAvia’s R&D facility at Cotswold Airport in Gloucestershire, UK. The company is now developing a certifiable configuration in order to fly commercial routes using the technology by 2025.
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Today’s flight is a hugely exciting vision of the future – guilt-free flying and a big step forward for zero-emission air travel. It also demonstrates how government funding for projects like these is translating into net zero growth,” Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Business.
