Commercial, Industrial, Sourcing Renewables  -  September 6, 2023

UK Companies Launch Hydrogen in Aviation Alliance

easyJet, Rolls-Royce, Airbus, Ørsted, GKN Aerospace and Bristol Airport, a group of companies in the UK aviation and renewable energy sectors, announced the creation of the Hydrogen in Aviation (HIA) alliance to accelerate the delivery of zero carbon aviation. 

HIA is focusing its efforts on the direct use of hydrogen to decarbonize the aviation sector.

According to the alliance, hydrogen is becoming a promising alternative fuel option for short-haul aviation. Airbus is developing new hydrogen-powered aircraft with the aim of entering commercial service from 2035 and Rolls-Royce has already conducted successful ground tests to power a jet engine with hydrogen in 2022. 

Several smaller operators have made rapid progress on hydrogen-powered aircraft, including ZeroAvia and Universal Hydrogen who have already carried out flight tests.

The group plans to propose a deliverable pathway to achieving hydrogen-powered aviation and will work with government, local authorities, and the aviation and hydrogen sectors. This will include plans for scaling up the infrastructure and the policy, regulatory and safety frameworks needed so that large-scale commercial aviation can become a reality.

“There is no doubt that the UK has the potential to become a world leader in hydrogen aviation, which could bring with it a £34bn per annum boost to the country’s economy by 2050, but in order to capture this opportunity, rapid change is needed and the time to act is now,” said Johan Lundgren, CEO of easyJet and first Chair of HIA in a statement. “We must work together to deliver the radical solutions required for a hard to abate industry like aviation so we can protect and maximize the benefits that it brings to the UK economy and society and that we know British consumers want to be preserved. “HIA looks forward to working with the UK Government to ensure the right funding, regulatory and policy changes are implemented to accelerate the delivery of zero carbon aviation.”

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