EU’s Alliance for Zero Emission Aviation to work on hydrogen, electrification

The European Commission said the new Alliance for Zero Emission Aviation would encourage and accelerate the development of electric and hydrogen-powered aircraft.

Transportation is rapidly changing and moving toward sustainable practices. The aviation sector is an important part of the European Union’s efforts to become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, with the development of electric and hydrogen-powered aircraft.

To enable their entry into commercial service, major changes need to be introduced in the industry’s ecosystem. The Alliance for Zero Emission Aviation will act as an enabler to encourage and accelerate the deployment of green aircraft, the European Commission said and called on private and public entities from the aviation community to join.

It will gather representatives of aircraft manufacturers, airlines, airports, energy companies and fuel providers, standardization and certification agencies, passenger and environmental interest groups and regulators. The members will look at issues such as the fuel and infrastructure requirements of hydrogen and electric aircraft at airports, the announcement adds.

EU should capture large share of green aviation sector

Last year, aircraft made in Europe accounted for 65% of commercial aircraft sold globally, European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton said. He pointed out that the domestic industry should capture a large share of the emerging market.

The Alliance for Zero Emission Aviation is a joint effort of private and public stakeholders

“We can be proud that Europe is leading the way in alternative propulsion. Initiatives such as the flying fuel cell propulsion system, hydrogen-combustion turbine, or ultralight, safe and reliable tanks for liquid hydrogen storage are all examples of the innovation potential in Europe. And I am not just referring to the large manufacturers, but also to the many smaller companies and start-ups,” Breton stated.

Zero emission aircraft need to enter market by 2035

Just under the Horizon Europe program for research and innovation, EUR 1.7 billion has been allocated to the Clean Aviation Partnership. The European Commission is planning to expand the Emissions Trading System or EU ETS to transportation.

The Clean Aviation Partnership aims to have zero emission technologies ready by 2027-2029 in order to have the aircraft ready for entry into service by 2035.