This Hydrogen-Powered Plane Just Made A Record-Setting First Flight
On March 2, 2023, A De Havilland Canada Dash 8-300 was flown around an airfield near Moses Lake in Washington to great fanfare. The aircraft had been outfitted with a cutting edge new engine and corresponding fuel source that may just revolutionize the way we collectively think of air travel.
The plane was operated by Alex Kroll, a test pilot and retired Air Force flyer, along with two additional crew members. The plane lifted off the ground at 8:41 a.m., and quickly reduced power to one of the engines, flying primarily under the power of a single hydrogen-powered engine.
The craft is the brainchild of Universal Hydrogen, a startup based in Los Angeles that’s seeking to transform the emissions levels produced through typical, commercial air travel. “If we don’t have a decarbonization solution as an industry we’re going to have to curtail traffic volumes, we’re going to have to curtail industry growth for the first time since the birth of the jet age,” Universal Hydrogen’s CEO Paul Eremenko told The Seattle Times.
This aircraft is certainly special. It utilizes a traditional aviation fuel-powered Pratt & Whitney engine under one wing, and a motor that’s powered by electricity created by a liquid hydrogen fuel cell attached to the other. Kroll noted that not only did the plane perform without incident essentially under the power of just the hydrogen-fueled engine, but “all the noise was coming from the left side,” housing the traditional engine.
This Hydrogen-Powered Plane Just Made A Record-Setting First Flight
- Advertisment - 