Stéphane Séjourné, executive vice-president of the European Commission and commissioner for prosperity and industrial strategy, said that Climate Impulse is a testament to European ability to push the boundaries of science, engineering and innovation.
“Europe has always progressed thanks to its pioneers, researchers and industrialists. This project is further proof of that. With hydrogen, we are supporting a strategic sector that will be one of the driving forces behind the decarbonisation of our economy and our industrial competitiveness.
“Granting the European Commission’s patronage to Climate Impulse was a natural choice: this aircraft will fly the flag for Europe and our journey towards a decarbonised world.”
In a statement, Climate Impulse states that at a time when global momentum on climate action is facing increasing headwinds, the EU’s endorsement sends a clear signal: Europe remains firmly committed to accelerating the transition to a climate-neutral future through innovation and clean technologies.
The statement adds that the patronage also serves as a catalyst for dialogue between institutional, scientific and industrial leaders, fostering the collaboration needed to accelerate a more sustainable aviation.
“Climate Impulse is designed to show that emission-free flight is not a distant abstraction but an engineering challenge that can be met with technologies available now.”
Decarbonising aviation
Aviation is regarded as one of the harder sectors to decarbonise, due to the complexities involved.
Sustainable aviation fuels appear to offer the most direct approach, at least in the short-term, although, currently they are significantly more costly and their availability is limited.
Batteries, widely used on aircraft for backup and ground power, are at best likely to be of value for light aircraft and short range flight.
For medium range flight, hydrogen is likely to be increasingly important and for example in 2025 Airbus, which has done much work on its feasibility, announced that hydrogen fuel cell technology would be the propulsion method for its future aircraft, with the results of fuel cell prototyping and powertrain testing, as well as research into complementary technology such as cryogenics, supporting its viability.
Boeing, however, despite a long history of working with hydrogen, appears less sanguine, considering it may have potential for short and medium haul flights but putting more focus on sustainable aviation fuels.
Industrial partnerships
Partnerships are essential for delivering a project of the scale of Climate Impulse.
Climate Impulse is backed by its main partners, Syensqo, OCP Group and Mohammed VI Polytechnic University and official partners Breitling and Orange.
Other supporters are Airbus Foundation, Axa, Bouygues, BNP Paribas, Schneider Electric Foundation, Région Grand Est, ADEO and Région Île de France.
