New step towards hydrogen flight for Fabrum, AMSL Aero and Stralis

“By bringing all the elements together for the first time on site at an international airport – producing, storing, and dispensing liquid hydrogen into composite aviation tanks as a fuel – we’re proving that liquid-hydrogen technologies for aircraft are now available and that hydrogen-electric flight will soon be a reality in Australasia,”said Christopher Boyle, CEO of Fabrum.“Our lightweight composite tanks, together with our hydrogen liquefier and refuelling systems, are critical enablers for hydrogen-powered flight.”he emphasised.

Fabrum used a triple-walled composite cryogenic tank for this operation, the result of twenty years of R&D in cryogenics and advanced materials. This architecture offers enhanced thermal insulation, 70% faster refuelling and an 80% reduction in boil-off losses compared to traditional double-walled tanks.

A long-range hydrogen eVTOL

“We are working with Fabrum to develop onboard tanks for our fixed-wing test aircraft to supply hydrogen to our hydrogen-electric propulsion system. We’re excited to see Fabrum’s hydrogen fuel
dispensing systems for these onboard tanks proven out in testing. This is a vital step toward our first liquid hydrogen test flights,”said Bob Criner, CEO of Stralis Aircraft. His company is banking on a propulsion system that is six times lighter than current fuel cells and up to 50% cheaper to operate than a fossil fuel engine, with a range up to ten times greater than 100% battery solutions.

AMSL Aero has validated, with Fabrum, the key stages of the hydrogen cycle: production, storage in a cryogenic container, and then filling of the on-board tanks.

“Vertiia is the world’s first eVTOL designed from inception to be powered by hydrogen for long-range, cargo and passenger operations. Vertiia must be as light as possible to achieve its 1,000 km range, 500kg payload and 300 km/h cruising speed. Liquid hydrogen is the lightest zero-emission method of storing energy for long-distance flight“, said Adriano Di Pietro, CEO of AMSL Aero. Vertiia’s first LH₂ flights are scheduled for 2026.

The three companies are participating in the Hydrogen Flight Alliance in Australia, supported by the federal government’s CRC-P programme and Ara Ake, New Zealand’s centre for future energy. The goal is to launch Australasia’s first commercial liquid hydrogen flight by 2027.

Heading Photo : Peter Morris for AMSL Aero. Associate Senior Engineer Alfie Swallow works on AMSL Aero’s Hydrogen Fuel Cell – Photos: Fabrum, AMSL Aero and Stralis.