United and Virgin Australia Group have agreed a new partnership to enhance the travel experience between Australia and the Americas, which is set to roll out starting in early 2022.
"The United States and Australia share a special bond and I'm especially proud that United was the only airline to maintain a vital link between these two countries throughout the pandemic," said United CEO Scott Kirby. "Looking ahead, Virgin Australia is the perfect partner for United. Our partnership provides considerable commercial value for both airlines and a shared commitment to offer the best travel experience for our customers."
United currently offers daily direct flights from San Francisco and Los Angeles to Sydney, while other services including flights from Houston and direct services to Melbourne are expected to resume later in 2022. Under this new partnership, United's customers will now have access to top Australian destinations including Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.
The partnership will also triple Virgin Australia's reach into the US, with customers accessing United's vast domestic and international network, connecting at United's multiple Australian gateways.
The partnership is another significant customer enhancement for the relaunched Virgin Australia.
"We are grateful to have such a strong partner in United," said Virgin Australia Group CEO Jayne Hrdlicka. "They have proudly been one of Australia's most loyal and long serving aviation partners and their market strength both to Australia and in the United States brings great value to our guests. We look forward to innovating together on behalf of our guests to ensure they have the very best travel experiences to over 90 destinations in the US."
Meanwhile, United has taken a new equity stake in ZeroAvia, which is focused on hydrogen-electric aviation solutions, and expects to buy up to 100 of the company's new zero-emission, 100% hydrogen-electric engines (ZA2000-RJ).
The engine could be retrofit to existing United Express aircraft as early as 2028. One potential use is on United's 50-seat CRJ-550.
"Hydrogen-electric engines are one of the most promising paths to zero-emission air travel for smaller aircraft, and this investment will keep United out in front on this important emerging technology," said Scott Kirby, CEO of United. "United continues to look for opportunities to not only advance our own sustainability initiatives but also identify and help technologies and solutions that the entire industry can adopt."
The ZA2000-RJ is expected to be used in pairs as a new power source for existing regional aircraft. Under the agreement with United Airlines Ventures, United will pursue a conditional purchase agreement for 50 ZeroAvia ZA2000-RJ engines, with an option for 50 more, enough for up to 50 twin-engine aircraft which would be operated by United Express partners once they are fully developed and certified by regulators as soon as 2028.
"This support by United, alongside our other forward-thinking partners, demonstrates the importance of hydrogen-electric propulsion in the future of sustainable flight," said Val Miftakhov, founder and CEO and of ZeroAvia. "The United Express routes powered by hydrogen-electric aircraft will be enabling large numbers of passengers to take zero-emission flights well within this decade."
ZeroAvia is accelerating development of its ZA2000 engine and will soon begin ground tests of its ZA600 in a 19-seat aircraft, with the aim of entering commercial service with this smaller engine by 2024. ZeroAvia's roadmap calls for it to develop hydrogen-electric propulsion for progressively larger aircraft. In September 2020, ZeroAvia completed the world's first hydrogen fuel cell powered flight of a commercial-grade aircraft. ZeroAvia has already secured experimental certificates for two prototype aircraft from the FAA in the United States and the Civil Aviation Authority in the U.K. and has passed significant flight test milestones.