A zero-emission aircraft designer and manufacturer based in Australia has completed one year of hydrogen fuel cell testing for its hybrid electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The system developed by AMSL Aero will soon undergo emission-free flight testing with the goal of decarbonizing essential air services such as medical transfers, passenger and freight services.

Source: AMSL Aero

The Vertia craft is designed to fly 1,000 km at a cruising speed of 300 km/h. Research conducted on a test bench replicating the hydrogen powertrain for Vertiia consumed about 200 kg of hydrogen since mid-2004. In addition to confirming the operational feasibility of the eVTOL system, the test and evaluation program was able to export 30 kW of electricity into the airport grid for three working weeks and reduce Bankstown Airport’s reliance on purchased power by about 1.8 MWh.

The test bench has also been used to recharge Vertiia between flights at Wellington Aerodrome in rural New South Wales. The firm has received deposits for at least 26 Vertiia aircraft orders from civil customers, including 20 from Aviation Logistics, which operates the Air Link, AirMed and Chartair brands covering passenger services, aircraft charter, air freight and aeromedical flights across Australia.