(Stuttgart) – According to its own information, H2Fly GmbH has completed the “world’s first flight of a manned electric aircraft powered by liquid hydrogen”. The Stuttgart-based developer of hydrogen-electric propulsion systems completed four liquid hydrogen-powered flights with the “HY4” demonstration aircraft - including one flight that lasted over three hours. The start took place in Maribor, Slovenia.
The demonstration aircraft is equipped with a propulsion system made of fuel cells and tanks for storing cryogenic – therefore highly cooled – liquid hydrogen. Compared to storing gaseous hydrogen under high pressure (GH2), the use of liquid cryogenic hydrogen (LH2) enables significantly lower tank weights and volumes, resulting in increased aircraft range and payload, the company said.
Liquid hydrogen increases the range
“The test flights indicate that by using liquid instead of gaseous hydrogen, the maximum range of the HY4 demonstration aircraft can be doubled from 750 to 1.500 kilometers,” the company said. “We have proven that liquid hydrogen is suitable for emission-free medium and long-haul flights,” said Josef Kallo, co-founder of H2Fly. “We are now focusing on expanding our technology for regional aircraft and other applications.”
The test flight campaign is the culmination of Project HEAVEN - a consortium supported by the European government that aims to demonstrate the use of liquid cryogenic hydrogen in aircraft. In addition to H2Fly, these include the French manufacturer of industrial gases and designer and supplier of cryogenic temperature tanks Air Liquide SA, the Slovenian manufacturer of ultralight aircraft Pipistrel Vertical Solutions, the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the fuel cell developer EKPO Fuel Cell Technologies GmbH and the Spanish Engineering company Fundación Ayesa.
With the completion of the test flight campaign in the HEAVEN project, H2Fly will now focus on commercialization. In June, the company announced the development of new H2F-175 fuel cell systems that can operate at altitudes up to 27.000 feet. The developments receive funding from HEAVEN, the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection, the Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport and the University of Ulm.
This is what the future “Hydrogen Aviation Center” could look like. © Stuttgart Airport
In addition, H2FLY plans to open its Center of Excellence for Hydrogen in Aviation in 2024. The center is being built at Stuttgart Airport and is co-financed by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Transport. A central point for the future of the European aviation industry and the hydrogen economy is to be created there, as well as facilities for the integration of hydrogen-electric propulsion systems and an infrastructure for liquid hydrogen.
Photos
Test flight: The “HY4” is powered by liquid hydrogen. © H2Fly GmbH
