Airbus delays its ZEROe hydrogen aircraft as UK CAA expands hydrogen programme

In a significant setback to ambitions for large-scale hydrogen-powered commercial aircraft, Airbus has reportedly delayed its flagship ZEROe programme, in which it had planned to launch a hydrogen-powered commercial airliner by 2035. According to the Financial Times, the timeframe could be pushed back by between five and 10 years and the budget for the programme has been cut by a quarter. A roadmap just published by the European aviation industry downgraded the contribution of hydrogen aircraft to its Net Zero by 2050 target. A more bullish UK Civil Aviation Authority, on the other hand, has announced it is to expand its Hydrogen Challenge programme, as part of a broader exploration of new opportunities to help decarbonise the nation’s air transport sector, and to help make the UK a leader in hydrogen-powered aviation.

Airbus confirmed French reports that the ZEROe programme was to be delayed due to slow development of essential technology, but did not elaborate on its future. In a statement published by Reuters, the airframer said: “Hydrogen has the potential to be a transformative energy source for aviation. However, we recognise that developing a hydrogen ecosystem – including infrastructure, production, distribution and regulatory frameworks – is a huge challenge requiring global collaboration and investment.”

The Financial Times report also said Airbus has stopped plans to test hydrogen fuel cell engines on a testbed Airbus A380.  

The announcement slipstreamed a separate decision by Airbus Helicopters to suspend its CityAirbus NextGen electric air taxi programme, citing immaturity in battery technology, and a parallel decision by Germany’s air taxi startup Volocopter to file for insolvency.

In 2020, Airbus abandoned the E-Fan X hybrid-electric programme launched in 2017 with partners Rolls-Royce and Siemens to develop a hybrid-electric aircraft, instead to focus on delivering hydrogen-powered passenger aircraft and unveiled three potential ZEROe designs. The serious delay to the ZEROe programme casts serious doubt over the short-to-medium term viability of this pathway for commercial aviation, with the airframer’s comments referring not just to production and distribution of hydrogen for air transport but also the preparedness of regulators and infrastructure providers including airports and energy producers, with which it has been working closely.

One major factor continually flagged in discussions about zero-emission aircraft is the cost of generating sufficient renewable electricity to create green hydrogen, or to directly charge new electric aircraft, and the ability or willingness of energy providers and airports to make heavy investments in new technologies and fuels without certainty of demand.

The second edition of the European aviation industry’s Destination 2050 roadmap just published, four years after the first, shows a notable reduction in the contribution by hydrogen-powered aircraft to its net zero emissions by 2050 decarbonisation target, from 20% to 6%. This, says the report, is due to a lower than anticipated market share of hydrogen-powered aircraft and their later entry in service, from 2035 to 2040. “If market introduction would be pushed back even further, only a marginal contribution by 2050 remains, such that the return on current R&D investments being made would only come in the second half of this century,” it adds.

The suspension of the ZEROe programme blurs industry perspectives on hydrogen-powered aviation, coming closely after an enthusiastic announcement by the UK Civil Aviation Authority that it was expanding and extending its Hydrogen Challenge programme. Announcing a second round of the research project, the CAA said it was focused on testing hydrogen propulsion, developing airport infrastructure for hydrogen-powered aircraft and innovating aircraft systems for hydrogen powered operations.

The Hydrogen Challenge was initiated last year to help prepare the UK aerospace industry for the transition to zero carbon emission fuels, attracting multiple aerospace companies to partner with the CAA in investigating and developing hydrogen infrastructure and technology.   

“These trials keep the UK on course to be a world leader in hydrogen propulsion,” said Tim Johnson, Director of Communications, Strategy and Policy at the CAA. “We are working with some of the most innovative companies and minds to better understand this technology and how it might be introduced safely in the aerospace sector. In doing so, it offers the potential to enable a more sustainable aerospace system and support UK economic growth.”

The next phase of the Hydrogen Challenge will focus on four key elements: designs of new aircraft and remotely piloted systems powered by hydrogen fuel cells; airport infrastructure changes to enable safe storage of and refuelling with hydrogen; test flights, safety assessments and demonstrations to help refine performance and deal with regulatory challenges; and research by leading British aeronautical institutes to improve the sector’s understanding of hydrogen fuel.

The CAA highlighted 12 diverse projects involving key partners as part of what it has dubbed its ‘hydrogen sandbox’.

Aircraft manufacturer Cranfield Aerospace Solutions, which is moving to certificate and commercialise hydrogen-electric powered Britten-Norman Islander commuter aircraft, will use its Project Fresson 1a programme to test potential regulation of the new propulsion systems.

Hydrogen-electric powertrain developer ZeroAvia, which is also working towards regulatory approval of its entry-level ZA600 system, is studying the transition to widespread use of hydrogen-powered aircraft, including safe storage, distribution and refuelling at airports and deployment on aircraft, while Swift Aircraft is exploring hydrogen propulsion in new zero-emission training aircraft for use at flight schools.

Remotely controlled aircraft are also being studied as part of the Hydrogen Challenge, with Qdot Technology developing a long-range, zero emission, high-capacity aircraft for logistics, monitoring and supporting offshore operations, while Stratospheric Platforms is building the Stratomast, a high altitude, liquid hydrogen-powered craft designed to deliver high capacity, low latency data connectivity direct to devices on the ground.

Engine maker Rolls-Royce is designing gas turbines which are compatible with zero emission fuels including hydrogen and partnering with low-cost airline easyJet to understand the new technologies, while Oxford University is studying the scientific challenges of pressurising, heating and combusting initially cryogenic hydrogen to enable combustion within gas turbines.

Intelligent Energy is studying regulatory and certification issues of integrating hydrogen fuel cell systems into the aerospace sector, while Ultima Forma is creating vacuum containment barrier systems for use in storing liquid hydrogen, and HyFIVE, a collective of UK aerospace and academic leaders, is developing, testing and validating architecture for modular, scalable cryogenic hydrogen fuel systems.  

At Kirkwall Airport, the gateway to Scotland’s outlying Orkney Islands, an alliance has been formed between Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership (HITRANS), Highlands and Islands Airports (HIAL), regional airline Loganair, AGS, Orkney Islands Council and the European and Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) to test how hydrogen fuel infrastructure can be deployed at airports and on aircraft across Scotland.

Meanwhile, at Exeter Airport in south-west England, Regional & City Airports is trialling multiple approaches to hydrogen storage and refuelling.

The CAA said the hydrogen trials would last three years to help build the development potential of participating companies, adding that the outcomes of the 2024 Hydrogen Challenge would be released “in the near future”.

Image: UK Civil Aviation Authority

Tony Harrington

Correspondent

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Additional reporting by Christopher Surgenor