European aerospace giant Airbus has made public new designs for its electric, hydrogen-powered single-aisle aircraft dubbed the “ZEROe”, aimed at decarbonising the sector and bringing “a revolution in air transport comparable to that of electric vehicles in the automotive sector.”
Feasibility studies were launched back in 2020 to explore two primary hydrogen propulsion technologies: hydrogen combustion and hydrogen fuel cells. Tests and cryogenic experiments to help with the necessary storage at -253°C supported the latter, leading to a 2025 announcement that hydrogen fuel cell technology had been selected.
Those cells transform hydrogen into electricity through a chemical reaction, with water as the only byproduct, meaning the process can be considered carbon-neutral if the hydrogen is made using renewable energy. They will power an electric propulsion system with four propellers, each with its own fuel cell stack, Airbus says in a press release.
Weight and timetable issues
Hydrogen fuel cells are nothing new, but commercial viability for aviation was the problem. Cells large enough to power an aircraft are usually an unacceptable weight for flight. To get round this issue, Airbus partnered with ElringKlinger in an “Aerostack” venture to develop a cell that would comply with aerospace weight and safety regulations. Their fuel cell demonstrator completed a successful testing campaign in 2023, powered on at 1.2 megawatts.
Despite that progress, the bad news is that the hydrogen-powered plane plans will likely come to fruition much later than Airbus had originally indicated. They had timetabled a zero-emission aircraft for 2035, but now estimates say the ZEROe will not take to the skies until later in the decade. Part of the problem is the scaling up of the global hydrogen ecosystem needed to support hydrogen-powered flight.
Expanding the hydrogen ecosystem
Airbus has created a Hydrogen Hubs at Airports programme to expand that ecosystem, by bringing together “airlines, airports, industry players, energy providers and technology specialists to address the key questions around producing, storing and distributing hydrogen,” press materials say. Over 220 airports are partnering the initiative, as well as “numerous energy providers and airlines.”
Though the ZEROe might not be coming as fast as hoped, aerospace fans and sustainable travel enthusiasts might be interested to hear that the firm hasn’t ruled out other decarbonised flight options. The research and development phase of ZEROe included three other aircraft designs, all powered by hydrogen combustion, not cells. They were the Turbofan, the Turboprop and the Blended-Wing Body (BWB). Airbus has said it could yet choose to invest in these options in the future.
