Airbus delays development of new hydrogen-powered aircraft

European aerospace manufacturer Airbus is postponing plans to develop a new commercial hydrogen-powered aircraft until the middle of the next decade. It said the necessary technology is developing more slowly than expected. Reuters reported the news, citing a company statement. The delay complicates Airbus’s ambition to lead the adoption of hydrogen fuel to curb aviation emissions, the agency writes.

Airbus did not provide a new timeline for the project, but the Force ouvrière trade union said employees were told earlier this week that the technology was five to ten years behind the pace needed to meet the original 2035 target. That target was set five years ago by CEO Guillaume Faury.

„Hydrogen has the potential to become a transformative energy source for aviation,“ Airbus said.

„However, we recognise that developing the hydrogen ecosystem – including infrastructure, production, distribution and regulatory frameworks – is a huge challenge requiring global cooperation and investment,“ the company added in an email to Reuters.

Faury still believes hydrogen will take hold in some form in the aviation ecosystem over the coming decades, and that Europe should take the initiative. Airbus’s US rival Boeing takes a different view of the potential for hydrogen propulsion. At last year’s Farnborough Airshow, it expressed concerns about the technology’s safety implications.

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