Airbus says it is committed to creating a ‘commercially viable hydrogen aircraft’ and is now sharing new details about the project.
Airbus launched its ZEROe project back in 2020, with the company announcing it was aiming to create a zero-emission aircraft based on hydrogen.
Since then, the company has been working on the technology to make the concept a reality.
Earlier this week, it shared an updated ‘roadmap’ on how ZEROe is going.
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Airbus is committed to creating a hydrogen-powered plane
Numerous aviation companies are currently working on hydrogen aircraft, such as French startup Beyond Aero – which is working on a hydrogen-electric business jet, and German-based H2FLY which carried out the world’s first piloted fight of a liquid-hydrogen electric aircraft last year.
This week, the 2025 Airbus Summit was held, during which the company reaffirmed its commitment ‘to bring to market a commercially viable hydrogen aircraft’ and released details about the technology it was set to use to ‘enable the advent of a fully electric’ hydrogen-powered plane.
In the past, the team had researched and investigated the use of hydrogen combustion, but speaking at the summit the company confirmed it had opted to forge ahead with fuel-cell technology.
“Hydrogen is at the heart of our commitment to decarbonize aviation,” Airbus head of Future Programs Bruno Fichefeux said.
“While we’ve adjusted our roadmap, our dedication to hydrogen-powered flight is unwavering.
“Just as we saw in the automotive sector, fully electric aircraft powered by hydrogen fuel cells have the potential in the longer term to revolutionize air transport for the better, complementing the sustainable aviation fuel pathway.”
The company shared details about the plane
Airbus said its ZEROe aircraft will be powered by four two-megawatt electric propulsion engines that will be driven by a fuel cell system that converts hydrogen and oxygen into electrical energy.
All four of the fuel cell systems will be supplied via two liquid hydrogen tanks.
The company said that this was the basic outline of the plans for the aircraft, but admitted there would be various tweaks and adjustments as time went on and new information and data about the technology was gathered.
“This concept will continue to be refined over the coming years as additional tests will help mature the technologies associated with hydrogen storage and distribution, as well as with the propulsion systems,” Airbus said in a statement.
The company has also confirmed that ‘integrated ground testing’ of the aircraft is planned for 2027 – so watch this space.
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