Regulatory

UK creates Hydrogen in Aviation (HIA) alliance

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UK creates Hydrogen in Aviation (HIA) alliance

A group of leading companies in the UK aviation and renewable energy sectors including easyJet, Rolls-Royce, Airbus, Ørsted, GKN Aerospace and Bristol Airport, have established the Hydrogen in Aviation (HIA) alliance to accelerate the delivery of zero carbon aviation. HIA states that it will work to ensure the UK capitalises on the huge opportunity hydrogen presents to both the aviation industry and country as a whole.

The group will be drawing on their expertise to propose a clear and deliverable pathway to achieving hydrogen-powered aviation. HIA say that it will work “constructively with Government, local authorities, and the aviation and hydrogen sectors to enable the UK to fulfil its potential as a global leader in this critical application of hydrogen technology”. This  work is planned to include setting out the pathway for scaling up the infrastructure and the policy, regulatory and safety frameworks needed so that large scale commercial aviation can become a reality.

The alliance will set out that Government needs to be focused on three key areas: supporting the delivery of the infrastructure needed for the UK to be a global leader; ensuring the aviation regulatory regime is hydrogen ready; and transforming the funding for hydrogen aviation R&D support into a 10 year programme.

“There is no doubt that the UK has the potential to become a world leader in hydrogen aviation, which could bring with it a £34bn per annum boost to the country’s economy by 2050, but in order to capture this opportunity, rapid change is needed and the time to act is now,” said Johan Lundgren, CEO of easyJet and first Chair of HIA. “We must work together to deliver the radical solutions required for a hard to abate industry like aviation so we can protect and maximise the benefits that it brings to the UK economy and society and that we know British consumers want to be preserved.”

Grazia Vittadini, Chief Technology Officer at Rolls-Royce, said: “Collaboration is key when it comes to achieving our net zero ambitions as an industry, which is why we are proud to be part of the Hydrogen in Aviation Alliance. Our contribution to HIA is the capability and experience we have in pioneering new technologies and solutions - we have already tested a modern aero engine on green hydrogen and we strongly believe it is one of the solutions that will help decarbonise aviation in the mid to long-term.”

Sabine Klauke, Chief Technology Officer at Airbus said:  “As Airbus continues to mature the aircraft technologies needed to deliver hydrogen-powered flight, a united industry voice is needed to secure a robust ecosystem of renewably-sourced hydrogen. Joining our peers from across the UK aviation landscape in a targeted approach to policy and investment action brings us closer to a decarbonised future of flying."

Ørsted head of power-to-X, Olivia Breese, said that the company was fully committed to renewable hydrogen as a key solution to defossilise hard-to-electrify sectors such as aviation. “Our long experience in developing and deploying new technologies has taught us that collaboration across policy makers, developers, customers and supply chain - and considerable investment from each of them – is critical to bring down costs and drive a new sector to scale. Alliances such as the HIA are essential to bring together different actors across the value chain to support and accelerate the role hydrogen can, and must, play in the UK.”