An aviation startup has completed what it calls the world's first hydrogen fuel cell-powered passenger aircraft flight

• ZeroAvia has completed what it calls the world's first hydrogen fuel cell-powered passenger aircraft flight.
• The landmark flight was completed in a six-seater commercial Piper aircraft that was then retrofitted with a new eco-friendly powertrain.
• The flight was a part of ZeroAvia's UK government-backed HyFlyer project, which also completed the country's first electric commercial-sized aircraft flight in the same Piper M-class.
• According to ZeroAvia's CEO Val Miftakhov in a statement, the future of commercial hydrogen fuel cell-powered flights may not be as far away as we assume.

ZeroAvia has completed what it calls the world's first hydrogen fuel cell-powered passenger flight.

The London and California-based company's flight took place at its research and development space in England. According to a report by Engineering and Technology, the flight lasted 20 minutes.

This landmark journey was completed in a six-seater commercial-sized Piper aircraft that was retrofitted to be supported by hydrogen fuel cells, a power source that's now being tested in forms of transit ranging from mining dump trucks to pick-up trucks. This Piper M-class' powertrain retrofit also now makes it the world's largest hydrogen-powered aircraft, according to its maker.

Just like any other aircraft, the hydrogen-electric Piper completed a taxi, take-off, flight pattern, and landing. However, as of its current stage, ZeroAvia's aircraft can't compare to that of a fossil fuel-powered iteration in terms of flying distance and payload yet.

The flight is a part of ZeroAvia's UK government-backed HyFlyer project, which was created with the intention of producing zero emissions small passenger aircrafts.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

However, this hydrogen-electric flight isn't the project's only flight to have taken place so far.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

In late June, HyFlyer also saw the completion of the UK's first commercial-sized electric flight in the same six-seater Piper M-class aircraft.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

Source: ZeroAvia

The future of commercial hydrogen fuel cell-powered flights may not be as far as we think, according to ZeroAvia's CEO Val Miftakhov in a statement.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

“While some experimental aircraft have flown using hydrogen fuel cells as a power source, the size of this commercially available aircraft shows that paying passengers could be boarding a truly zero-emissions flight very soon,” Miftakhov said in a statement.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

Source: ZeroAvia

According to ZeroAvia, the company is now looking to complete a 250-mile zero-emissions flight — equivalent to the distance between Los Angeles to San Francisco — by the end of this year.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

The successful completion of this flight has more implications than just greener travel, according to the company. With the air travel industry in a rut amid the coronavirus pandemic, a hydrogen-electric aircraft fleet could mean a future of lower operating and ownership costs.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia

Source: Business Insider

Looking forward, the company plans to begin "commercial operations" in 2023.

The world's first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight.      ZeroAvia