ZeroAvia and Hybrid Air Vehicles have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to jointly develop a hydrogen-electric version of the Airlander 10, aiming to deliver emission-free flight operations for over 100 passengers. The collaboration marks a step toward decarbonising large-scale airship operations by replacing the aircraft’s four conventional diesel engines with ZeroAvia’s hydrogen-electric propulsion system.
According to the companies, integrating the hydrogen-electric system is expected to significantly reduce maintenance costs while enabling zero-emission performance. The partners will also explore the feasibility of applying ZeroAvia’s propulsion technology to future larger aircraft and assess hydrogen refuelling infrastructure requirements for the Airlander 10’s planned operations.
See also: Loganair Partners with ZeroAvia to Explore Hydrogen-Electric Engines for Regional Flights
The airship is expected to have a payload capacity of 10 tonnes and a maximum range of 4,000 nautical miles. Hybrid Air Vehicles estimates that the hydrogen-electric powertrain could cut emissions by about 90 per cent compared with conventional aircraft of similar capacity.
“ZeroAvia has led the development of hydrogen-electric propulsion systems and made impressive progress commercially, technically and with regulators,” said Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles. “Our intention has always been to offer our customers a fully zero-emission variant of the Airlander, for efficiency and environmental reasons, and this partnership with ZeroAvia will help us in this direction.”
See also: ZeroAvia, Horizon Aircraft to Develop Hydrogen-Electric VTOL
Val Miftakhov, Founder and CEO of ZeroAvia, said the partnership aligns with both companies’ goals to advance sustainable aviation in the UK. “Airlander is another exciting airframe for line-fit of our powertrains as it can open up a whole new market in air travel due to its range, efficiency and ability to operate from almost anywhere,” Miftakhov said. “Like ZeroAvia, Hybrid Air Vehicles is an aerospace innovator with exciting manufacturing and growth plans for the UK that can deliver hundreds of well-paid jobs in different regions in the UK.”
The latest partnership builds on earlier efforts to decarbonise the Airlander 10. In 2019, Hybrid Air Vehicles received £1 million in funding from the UK Aerospace Research and Technology Programme, alongside Collins Aerospace and the University of Nottingham, to develop a fully electric propulsor for the airship.
