The European aircraft manufacturer has announced a partnership with London Gatwick, EasyJet and Air Products to extend its hydrogen capabilities and infrastructure in the UK.

The scope of the agreement covers the supply and storage of liquid hydrogen at the airport, refuelling and ground handling of hydrogen powered aircraft.

Given that the first hydrogen-powered aircraft will initially focus on short- and medium-haul routes, London Gatwick’s position as the UK’s main hub quickly became strategic. In addition, easyJet’s presence as a short-haul carrier makes it the ideal test bench for R&D regarding infrastructure. “Hydrogen is going to play an important role in decarbonising aviation so we need to lay the groundwork now to make that happen”said David Morgan, Chief Operating Officer at easyJet. He added: “The Gatwick hub is another positive signal and demonstrates the industry’s intent to both adapt and work together to reach the common goal of decarbonising aviation.”

An air traffic hub in the UK

Gatwick Airport CEO Stewart Wingate, believes that “Alongside Sustainable Aviation Fuels, hydrogen stands out as having real potential to help us decarbonise Scope 3 emissions at the airport, particularly for the short haul aircraft that dominate London Gatwick’s operations.” As for Airbus, it welcomes such a programme. “We’ve set ambitious targets to fly on hydrogen by 2035 and this technology needs to be supported by reliable and tested infrastructure” says Glenn Llewellyn, Airbus Vice President ZEROe Project. And he added: “Sharing knowledge and best practice at airports will be critical for building the right hydrogen ecosystem around the world and we look forward to working with all consortium members to develop the support for the technology and end-to-end hydrogen supply chain that will power future flight.”

To date, Airbus has signed agreements with partners and airports in 13 countries including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Spain, South Korea, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States.

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Article written by Laurent Meillaud and translated by Logan King