Alaska Airlines is partnering with aviation company ZeroAvia to develop what could be the world's largest zero-emission passenger aircraft. The first of an entire fleet of hydrogen-powered commercial aircraft.
The maiden flight of the first commercial hydrogen planes resulting from this collaboration is expected as early as 2023, but the first leg (between London and Rotterdam) is scheduled for 2024. It could be a milestone in 'aviation eco friendly.
The biggest (so far)
The hydrogen aircraft developed by ZeroAvia is not the first to be boasted by the company. At the moment, however, it is certainly the largest of the commercial aircraft destined to revolutionize civil flight. It will boast 76 seats, and will travel powered by a De Havilland Q400 turboprop, with the special engine conceived from the English company. Technically it will "serve" between 2.000 kW and 5.000 kW of power.
Commercial hydrogen aircraft - some other useful data
Engineers predict that the aircraft will be able to travel a distance of up to 800 kilometers (500 miles). It would be enough to cover many short-haul flight routes. While long-haul commercial aircraft travel is still out of the question, the project could very well start a revolution to decarbonise aviation. The ZeroAvia roadmap foresees more and more aircraft of this type: in 2024, as mentioned, the first official flights. In 2030 it will launch planes with up to 200 seats and so on, up to the targets set in 2040 with commercial planes with over 200 seats capable of covering more than 9000 kilometers.
The aviation industry is one of the most difficult industries to decarbonise. However, with this partnership we are one step closer to achieving our goal of making our skies carbon-free.
Val Miftakhov, the founder of ZeroAvia, in a recent statement.
