Bristol Airport to host historic hydrogen flight

The UK Government has announced that Bristol Airport will be involved in three groundbreaking projects to decarbonise flight, including the first flight of an aircraft powered by liquid hydrogen from a UK commercial airport.

The three projects are funded by the £8 million Zero Emissions Flight Demonstrator Programme, run by Innovate UK and supported by the Department for Transport.

The liquid hydrogen flight will be delivered by a consortium called Cryogenic Hydrogen Optimised Systems for AviatioN (CHOSAN). Led by Badgerworks, the group will work in close collaboration with the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), alongside partners Bristol Airport, Unitrove and Weslake, to demonstrate liquid hydrogen as a viable fuel for the next generation of commercial aviation, as part of a £1.7million project.

The project will deliver a series of regional flights in a light aircraft powered by hydrogen, with the first flight taking off from Bristol Airport. It aims to demonstrate that liquid hydrogen can be used at a commercial airport. The inaugural flight is expected to take place in the next couple of years.

Hydrogen refuelling capabilities

Bristol Airport is also supporting separate projects led by ZeroAvia and Equilibrion, which have received UK Government funding. ZeroAvia’s HyPRIME project will develop and demonstrate a mobile hydrogen refuelling vehicle capable of supporting liquid hydrogen-powered aircraft and ground support equipment.

Equilibrion will be undertaking a 12-month feasibility study, with Bristol Airport as the live airport partner. This study aims to address a vital gap in aviation infrastructure planning by examining how liquid hydrogen can be supplied, stored and managed at Bristol Airport to support future zero-emission aircraft operations.

Dave Lees, CEO of Bristol Airport, said: “We’re immensely proud to be part of these three transformative projects, which aim to demonstrate zero emission commercial flights in the UK.

“Bristol Airport has a strong record of supporting innovation – we hosted the UK’s first airside hydrogen refuelling trial and our ACT Programme has funded several pioneering projects to reduce emissions. The latest projects build on this work and will move the whole industry towards developing zero carbon flight.”

Hydrogen has the potential to play a crucial role in substantially reducing the climate impact of aviation in the long term and transforming air transport in a way comparable to the impact of electric vehicles in the automotive sector. Bristol Airport is already working in a unique partnership with aerospace companies, including Airbus, GKN Aerospace and Rolls-Royce, to accelerate the delivery of hydrogen-powered flight.