ZeroAvia Receives ATI’s 2024 Project of The Year Award
Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) awards ZeroAvia its Project of the Year Award 2024. The HyFlyer II project delivered the revolutionary first flight of a 19-seat aircraft using hydrogen-electric power and helped ZeroAvia advance its first engine up to formal certification application.
ZeroAvia announced that its HyFlyer II project has been chosen as Project of the Year 2024 by the UK’s Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI). The award celebrates projects funded through the ATI programme that have reached a significant milestone or concluded within the last year.
The HyFlyer II programme, which ran from December 2020 to November 2023, has created hundreds of jobs, large inward investment and world-first breakthroughs. In Kemble, UK, January, 2023, ZeroAvia showcased the first flight of a retrofitted 19-seater twin-engine Do228 hydrogen-electric testbed.
The flight testing and system development as part of HyFlyer II has been critical in designing and testing fuel cell and electrical-propulsion systems, establishing greater confidence in the potential for zero-emission flights this decade and leading to what could be the world’s first certified hydrogen-electric engine for commercial aircraft. ZeroAvia has already submitted its application to certify the ZA600, 600kW hydrogen-electric powertrain for up to 20 seat aircraft to the CAA.
The project also involved the development of novel high-temperature proton exchange membrane (HTPEM) fuel cells for aviation, exhibiting technology readiness for scaling hydrogen-electric technology for large aircraft. ZeroAvia sees HTPEM fuel cell power generation as key to developing zero-emission propulsion systems for aircraft larger than 20-seats, and the technology is integral to the company’s ZA2000 2-5.4 MW engine for 40-80 seat planes. Hydrogen-electric engines use hydrogen in fuel cells to generate electricity, which is then used to power electric motors to turn the aircraft’s propellers – the only emission is water.
ZeroAvia’s presence in the UK continues to grow with expansion of its operations, leading testing capabilities, including back-to-back electric propulsion rigs and fuel cell test labs, flight test platforms and hydrogen production at airport as well as associated refuelling infrastructure.
HyFlyer II has positioned ZeroAvia well to unlock the market for large regional turboprops, regional jets and, ultimately, the narrow-bodied aircraft segment, as well as supporting the growth of the UK supply chain, hydrogen economy and advancing the pathway for manufacturing. ZeroAvia has also launched a component line to support other electric aviation innovators based on the development for its full powertrains, further broadening the market for the technology.
“This award provides a great opportunity for our team to pull their heads up for a little moment from the hard work we are doing on certification and reflect on an historic achievement with this project. The hard work continues towards certification and advancing the core technologies to support larger platforms. I would like to thank the ATI, the Department for Business and Trade and Innovate UK for their support with the project.” says Gabriele Teofili, Managing Director, ZeroAvia
Gary Elliott, Chief Executive, Gary Elliott, said:“With the project of the year we are looking for projects that have challenged conventional wisdom, taken risks and provided valuable lessons to support our journey towards net zero. I would like to congratulate ZeroAvia for an exceptional project and to wish the business continued success and growth in the UK.”
As part of the HyFlyer II project, ZeroAvia collaborated with two partners, the European Marine Energy Centre and Aeristech. The ATI Programme is delivered in partnership with the Department for Business and Trade and Innovate UK, and in partnership with industry.
Original article
Image source: zeroavia.com