(Moses Lake / USA) – Universal Hydrogen Co. has completed the first test flight of its fuel cell-powered regional aircraft. The 40-passenger De Havilland DHC-8-300 (“Dash 8-300”) – dubbed “Lightning McClean” – circled for 15 minutes over Grant County International Airport (KMWH) in Moses Lake, Washington state.
Passenger operations planned from 2025
The flight took place with a special permit from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The obligatory “taxi test” to check ground handling and engine performance at low speeds took place at the beginning of February.
The test program is designed to last two years and is scheduled to be completed in 2025 with the start of passenger operations of converted ATR 72 regional aircraft. Universal Hydrogen is not developing new aircraft, but wants to convert machines from existing fleets to hydrogen power on a large scale. Modular capsules are used for refueling that are compatible with the airports' existing cargo infrastructure, so that "every airport in the world is hydrogen-capable," according to a statement.
Test flight with only one hydrogen engine
During the first test flight, only one of the aircraft's turbine engines was replaced with Universal Hydrogen's megawatt-class fuel cell electric propulsion system. The other engine remained conventional for safety reasons. “During the second lap over the airport, we were so pleased with the performance of the hydrogen propulsion that we were able to throttle the fossil turbine engine to demonstrate that the aircraft was powered primarily by hydrogen,” said Alex Kroll, the company’s lead test pilot. “The noise and vibrations of the fuel cell drive are significantly lower than those of the conventional turbine engine,” said the former US Air Force test pilot
Powertrain with technology from Plug Power
According to the information, the company's drive train is based on the "ProGen" fuel cells from the US manufacturer Plug Power Corp., which have been specially modified for use in aviation. The fuel cells drive the electric motor directly without intermediate batteries, which drastically reduces weight and costs.
The engine, a modified “Magni 650” electric drive, and the power electronics were supplied by MagniX of Everett. Seattle-based AeroTEC supported the development work, including the design of the modified nacelle structure, the development and integration of the aircraft systems as well as the aircraft modifications and the installation of the Universal Hydrogen powertrain in the test aircraft.
Industry is very interested
United Hydrogen, backed by GE Aviation, Airbus Ventures, Toyota Ventures, JetBlue Ventures and American Airlines, as well as several of the world's largest green hydrogen producers and financial investors, plans to use its modular logistics network to move from regional aircraft to larger aircraft and to hydrogen deliveries for other mobility applications .
“More than half of aviation’s CO2 emissions today come from A320 and 737 family aircraft,” said Paul Eremenko, co-founder and CEO of Universal Hydrogen. “Both Airbus and Boeing need to replace these venerable aircraft with a new design, with development beginning in the late 2020s and entering passenger service in the mid-2030s. Making their successors hydrogen aircraft is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity – perhaps the only chance for aviation to even come close to meeting the emissions targets of the Paris Agreement without having to restrict air traffic.”
247 orders for conversions
According to Universal Hydrogen, it already has orders for 247 aircraft conversions from 16 customers worldwide with a volume of over one billion dollars; also orders for the supply of fuel for the first ten years of operation with a volume of two billion dollars.
Representatives of Connect Airlines (USA) and the French charter airline Amelia, which are named as initial customers for the hydrogen aircraft converted by Universal Hydrogen, were also present at the test flight in Moses Lake. According to managing director John Thomas, Connect Airlines alone, which plans to start turboprop regional flights this spring, has ordered the conversion of 75 ATR 72-600 regional aircraft to hydrogen engines from Universal Hydrogen and has secured the option for 25 additional aircraft. Deliveries would begin in 2025.
Photo above
Universal Hydrogen completed the first test flight in the USA with a passenger aircraft converted to fuel cells. © Universal Hydrogen Co.
The De Havilland DHC-8-300 (“Dash 8-300”), converted by Universal Hydrogen to fuel cells, in the “Taxi Test”. © Universal Hydrogen Co. (Screenshots from a video about the “Taxi Test” at the beginning of February)
