Following its commitment to reduce carbon emissions, Air Nostrum confirmed through an official statement that the airline will be one of the first (along with Ravn Alaska and Icelandair) to have hydrogen-powered aircraft, after introducing the Dash-8 turboprop to its fleet.
Air Nostrum’s agreement was made with Universal Hydrogen to supply the aircraft fleet in the present and future, leading the way to green mobility due to millions of tons produced annually from commercial and cargo flights.
In order to introduce hydrogen technology to current aircraft, the airline would purchase 11 turboprop conversion kits, equipped with a hydrogen fuel cell and a fully electrified engine to replace the currently equipped power units.
A benefit of Universal Hydrogen’s kits is the non-dependence on an infrastructure to deliver hydrogen to the aircraft; this has been one of the main features for the two companies to forge a long-term working relationship for “green” mobility.
Related Content: Heart Aerospace to Provide 100 Electric Aircraft to United Airlines
Air Nostrum and Hydrogen as Future of Aviation
Regarding the full hydrogen transition, Air Nostrum confirmed that it is confident that hydrogen will be established as a default technology for mobility through the skies, although the full conversion to a zero-emission setup will be implemented after design, performance, operability and safety issues have been evaluated.
To see these planes operating on commercial flights, we will have to wait until 2025, when Universal Hydrogen and Air Nostrum plan to receive up to 60 passengers per trip on routes covering up to 1,000 kilometers.
Written by | Ronald Ortega
