PARIS—Scottish regional airline LoganAir could be one of the first to adopt hydrogen propulsion for commercial service.
At the Paris Air Show on Tuesday, the airline announced it will work with ZeroAvia—which has facilities in the U.S. and U.K.—to explore the “potential adoption” of the company’s hydrogen-electric engines. The memorandum of understanding (MOU) builds on ZeroAvia’s agreement with the U.K.’s RVL Aviation, its intended launch operator, to fly a Cessna Caravan equipped with its 600-kilowatt powertrain for 10-20 seat aircraft.
The Caravan is ZeroAvia’s targeted launch airframe for its ZA600. The company recorded its first sale to Jetcruzer International in February and claims to have more than 2,000 preorders—including the conditional purchase of 100 systems from United Airlines.
ZeroAvia plans to obtain supplemental type certificates for other regional aircraft, including the De Havilland Twin Otter, a twin-engine turboprop. It is working with the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to certify the ZA600, as well as the ZA2000, which is designed for 40-80 seat aircraft such as the ATR family of turboprop twins.
In addition to the Embraer 145 and Britten Norman BN-2 Islander, LoganAir operates three Twin Otters and more than 20 ATRs.
“We truly believe the Loganair fleet and network to be the perfect airline/geography combination when considering the ZeroAvia product suite, and we look forward to working together to provide a greener future,” said Luke Farajallah, CEO of LoganAir, in remarks accompanying the announcement.
ZeroAvia’s engines use hydrogen in the fuel cell to power electric motors that turn propulsors. The only byproduct, it says, is water. Because regional turboprops fly below the altitude where contrails typically form, the company says in-flight emissions are “effectively zero.”
Its pitch is that the hydrogen-electric fuel cell requires less maintenance and downtime than a conventional jet engine, while also being more cost-effective than kerosene in the long run.
On a per-energy basis, hydrogen costs more than kerosene. But hydrogen is more efficient, which could lead to lower fuel consumption. Studies are divided on the cost of producing and acquiring the fuel cell itself, though they typically agree that conventional jet engines are currently the cheaper option.
To generate the same power as a jet engine, the fuel cell would need to be larger and heavier. But they are well-suited to small aircraft up to the size of a regional turboprop, due to their lower power density by comparison.
Using a fuel cell rather than combusting hydrogen in a gas turbine eliminates the need to store liquid hydrogen onboard the aircraft and transport it to airports. Per the U.S. Department of Energy, maintenance costs may be lower than traditional engines because fuel cells have fewer moving parts.
ZeroAvia is taking part in a U.S. Air Force study to install its systems on the Caravan, and it has already tested them on the Dornier 228. In Paris, the company announced it received a more than $14 million grant from the U.K. government, intended to support future testing on the 228.
“Loganair’s route network lends itself very well to adoption of both our ZA600 and ZA2000 engine technology post certification, so hopefully this can be the start of a long-lasting customer relationship for ZeroAvia, and cleaner transport for passengers in Scotland and the U.K.” said Val Miftakhov, founder and CEO of ZeroAvia.
LoganAir represents the firm’s newest tie to Scotland. In May, it announced plans to build a manufacturing hub for fuel cell stacks near Glasgow Airport (EGPF), where the airline is headquartered. It has eyed the region since 2022, when it launched a partnership with ADS Airports, the owner and operator of Glasgow and other regional hubs.
Like this story? We think you’ll also like the Future of FLYING newsletter sent every Thursday afternoon. Sign up now.
