London Gatwick Airport, easyJet, Airbus and hydrogen supplier Air Products are to collaborate to expand hydrogen capability and infrastructure as Airbus plans to reach its target of getting a hydrogen powered aircraft in the sky by 2035.
Under Airbus’ Hydrogen Hubs at Airports framework, the scope of work covers liquid hydrogen supply and storage at the airport, refuelling and ground handling of hydrogen aircraft, as well as the exploration of other uses for hydrogen at London Gatwick.
Because early hydrogen-powered aircraft will initially focus on short to medium haul routes, London Gatwick’s position as the UK’s leading hub for these services, along with easyJet’s operational insight as a short haul carrier, makes this the ideal testbed for R&D into critical support infrastructure. This collaboration between Airbus, London Gatwick, easyJet and Air Products will serve as a powerful statement of commitment to making hydrogen-powered flight a reality by 2035.
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Airbus Vice President ZEROe Project Glenn Llewellyn said: “Our licence to operate hinges on finding better ways to fly. We know hydrogen has the versatility to be an excellent fuel source for decarbonising the industry. We’ve set ambitious targets to fly on hydrogen by 2035 and this technology needs to be supported by reliable and tested infrastructure. Sharing knowledge and best practice at airports will be critical for building the right hydrogen ecosystem around the world and we look forward to working with all consortium members to develop the support for the technology and end-to-end hydrogen supply chain that will power future flight.”
Stewart Wingate, Chief Executive Officer, London Gatwick, said: “Alongside Sustainable Aviation Fuels, hydrogen stands out as having real potential to help us decarbonise Scope 3 emissions at the airport, particularly for the short haul aircraft that dominate London Gatwick’s operations. In parallel we’ve accelerated our plans and aim to be net zero for the emissions we control – Scope 1 and 2 – ten years early, by 2030. We still have a long way to go and a lot of hard work to do, but today’s exciting partnership is an important early step toward reaching our net zero ambitions.”
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