HANGAR TALK UAS & eVTOL NEWS RELATING TO UNCrewed, AAM & eVTOL SYSTEMS
Joby Demonstrates Potential for Emissions-Free Regional Journeys with Landmark 523-Mile Hydrogen-Electric Flight
Joby Aviation Inc. (NYSE:JOBY) recently announced it has successfully flown a first-of-its-kind hydrogen-electric air taxi demonstrator 523 miles, with water as the only by-product. The aircraft, which takes off and lands vertically, builds on Joby’s successful battery-electric air taxi development program, and demonstrates the potential for hydrogen to unlock emissions- free, regional journeys that don’t require a runway.
JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby, said, “Traveling by air is central to human progress, but we need to find ways to make it cleaner. With our battery-electric air taxi set to fundamentally change the way we move around cities, we’re excited to now be building a technology stack that could redefine regional travel using hydrogen-electric aircraft.
“Imagine being able to fly from San Francisco to San Diego, Boston to Baltimore, or Nashville to New Orleans without the need to go to an airport and with no emissions except water. That world is closer than ever, and the progress we’ve made towards certifying the battery-electric version of our aircraft gives us a great head start as we look ahead to making hydrogen-electric flight a reality.
“The vast majority of the design, testing and certification work we’ve completed on our battery-electric aircraft carries over to commercializing hydrogen-electric flight. In service, we also expect to be able to use the same landing pads, the same operations team, and Joby’s ElevateOS software that will support the commercial operation of our battery-electric aircraft.”
The landmark test flight, believed to be the first forward flight of a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft powered by liquid hydrogen, was completed last month using a converted Joby pre-production prototype battery-electric aircraft fitted with a liquid hydrogen fuel tank and fuel cell system. It landed with 10% of its hydrogen fuel load remaining.
Jacob Wilson, (acting) branch chief of AFWERX Agility Prime, said: “Agility Prime has been very supportive of hydrogen- powered aircraft development and testing as it aligns with the program’s goals to advance transformative vertical lift technologies and broader Department of Defense operational energy goals of energy substitution and diversification, and energy demand reduction.”
“Clean hydrogen has the potential to help decarbonize our aviation system for decades to come,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable
42 July/Aug 2024
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