Airbus ZEROe Plan Postponement Cools Prospect for Hydrogen Propulsion`⁠↗

Airbus workersʼ union Force Ouvriere had revealed that the company had informed employees hydrogen technology was 5-10 years behind where it needed to be for a 2035 entry into service. The ZEROe budget was being cut by 25% and �ight demonstration of a hydrogen-electric fuel cell propulsion system on an A380 testbed canceled.

“Airbus has been a genuine leader in developing hydrogen aviation through ZEROe,” ZeroAvia says. “Weʼre still very con�dent because hydrogen-electric aviation will tackle climate impacts where SAF clearly wonʼt—providing the much-needed license to operate to the wider industry—and it will also o�er superior economics to kerosene or SAF combustion. Itʼs a matter of when, not if, with hydrogen in aviation, and it will be of immense commercial advantage for those that are early.”

But speaking in New York, Llewellyn expressed concern about China taking the lead. “In October 2023, �ve Chinese ministries signed a green aviation paper,” he said. “In that paper, there are 49 mentions of hydrogen. I think we know what happens when, at least in China, all the governmentʼs ministries line up on certain trajectories.”