HAV secures £7m support for Airlander production in Doncaster
Image courtesy HAV
HAV is a UK-based leader in sustainable aircraft technology and the Airlander 10 is an ultra-low emissions aircraft, capable of carrying 100 passengers or 10 tonnes of freight. The loan investment, worth £7 million will be used to support HAV to begin investing in facilities, talent and supply chains in South Yorkshire.
HAV’s plans will create over 1,200 new high value and highly skilled jobs in new green technologies, and further jobs and opportunities from growth across the company’s supply chains.
By 2026, the company aims to deliver the first completed orders to its customers and build 12 new Airlander 10 aircraft per year in Doncaster thereafter.
Oliver Coppard Mayor of South Yorkshire said: “I was elected as South Yorkshire’s Mayor on a pledge to build on our world-leading assets in the region and create a bigger, smarter and greener economy. As our neighbours across the Atlantic have proved, investing in the potential of green technologies will not only help us tackle the climate emergency, it will help us create high quality new jobs and grow a bigger, better economy which takes everyone with it.
"We have a world-class cluster of companies working at the cutting edge of advanced manufacturing and green technology, so I’m genuinely excited that we can support HAV in their ambitions to build a sustainable aviation cluster here in Doncaster.”
Airlander 10 will deliver 90% fewer per-passenger emissions in flight than traditional aircraft and aims to enable zero emissions operations by the end of the decade.
The agreement with SYMCA is a major milestone for HAV’s plans to bring Airlander to market. The loan will enable Hybrid Air Vehicles to begin investing in the region and paves the way for Hybrid Air Vehicles to invest up to £310m into its production programme.
HAV is also set to work with other partners across the region, including the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre at the University of Sheffield and Doncaster UTC.
Tom Grundy CEO, Hybrid Air Vehicles, said: “At Hybrid Air Vehicles we are revolutionising views of what aviation is, and Airlander is designed for us to rethink the skies. From day one, Mayor Oliver Coppard has bought into our vision, so I am delighted that he has announced this investment which will anchor green industries and over time create more than a thousand highly skilled jobs in Doncaster and South Yorkshire.
"We will work with outstanding regional partners, including Mayor Ros Jones and Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, Doncaster UTC, the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre and the University of Sheffield, to establish a world-leading cluster for green aerospace technologies, skills and supply chains.”
