Europe's first hydrogen-powered plane is set to take to the
skies after engineers from an EU-funded project announced that the
technology has been integrated into an aircarft and will be
operational by June.
Giulio Romeo, a member of the team at the Polytechnic University
of Turin that is spearheading the project, confirmed last week that
an electric engine and hydrogen fuel cells had been successfully
"We have finally managed to integrate the powertrain and the
battery of the electric engine," he said. "It is a great step ahead
He claimed the aircraft would "officially be the first plane to
fly on hydrogen" when it gets off the ground in the next few
months. "We'll put the machinery together in May, and we'll also
start the flight tests," he said. "In June, the skyleader will fly
for the first time for around an hour."
The aircraft, called Rapid 200, has been developed as part of
the catchily named Environmentally Friendly InterCity Aircraft
powered by Fuel Cells enterprise, which
involves 11 partners from across Europe.
The partners include Intelligent Energy, a
British clean power systems company, Israel Aerospace Industries and Jihlavan Airplane, an
aeronautical manufacturer based in the Czech Republic.
The aircraft's engine is driven by large lithium batteries
during take-off and then switch to hydrogen fuel cells while in the
air, cutting both noise pollution and emissions compared with the
kerosene-burning engines of traditional jets.
Although for now the technology is being tested in a light
aircraft, Romeo is confident that it will soon be developed for
"The reason why the aircraft is so small is that hydrogen
technology is not capable, at the moment, of supplying enough
energy to the engine," he said. "It could fuel the onboard electric
system and hence the aeroplane's air conditioning system, the
anti-icing system and the landing gear."
Despite the obstacles that it faces, Romeo cannot hide his
enthusiasm for what he hopes will be a hydrogen-based future:
"Boeing and Airbus have already expressed interest in the project
for their transport aircraft. In ten years' time, they may actually
be fuelled by hydrogen and fuel cells."