The drone capability coalition will operate within the framework of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group—a coalition of more than 50 countries tasked with coordinating military aid for Ukraine—which met in Brussels on Wednesday. The announcement comes two months after Latvia announced its role in spearheading  the coalition as part of a growing list of aid funneling into Ukraine two years after Russia launched its invasion.

“We are grateful to our British partners for their unwavering support. Drones play a vital role in modern warfare—they detect and destroy Russian armored vehicles, personnel, and even ships,” Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense said Thursday on X, formerly known as Twitter.

• READ MORE: Latvia to Spearhead Drone Coalition to Bolster Ukraine

While officials did not immediately say how many drones would be delivered, Latvian defense minister Andris Spruds indicated the coalition’s eventual target.

“With [Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s minister of defense,] we will work towards the goal of delivering one million drones to Ukraine,” Spruds said Thursday in a message on X.

On land and at sea we’ve seen the impact drones are having in Ukraine.

That’s why, as the largest supplier of drones to Ukraine, the UK will lead an international coalition to get thousands more onto the battlefield pic.twitter.com/cnpEl5twGG

— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) February 15, 2024

Under the new initiative, the U.K. will scale up and streamline provision of first person view (FPV) drones to Ukraine. 

The FPV drone capability of providing situational awareness to operators has been considered highly effective in targeting enemy positions, according to British military officials.

“The U.K. continues to do all we can to give Ukraine what it needs—upping our aid to 2.5 billion [pounds] this year and committing 200 million [pounds] to manufacture drones, making us Ukraine’s largest drone supplier,” U.K. Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said.

• READ MORE: Canada Pledges $60 Million For Ukraine F-16s 

“We know, of course, that drones are very important in this war,” Dutch Defense Minister Kasja Ollongren told Reuters. “That’s why we are joining the drone coalition that Ukraine has started together with Latvia, together with other countries, to make sure that we do just that—increase production, use the latest technology, and provide exactly what Ukraine needs.”

The race to production hasn’t gone unnoticed by Russia. On Thursday, Russian defense company Izhevsk Unmanned Systems, maker of Kub and Tachyon drones, said it was expanding its production facility and adding 360 jobs in order to ramp up output of its drones “10 times in 2024,” TASS Russian news agency reported.

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Zipline on Monday announced plans to significantly expand a medical drone delivery initiative within the U.K.’s National Health Service (NHS) in collaboration with Apian—which, interestingly, partnered with Wing in August. The program will roll out in fall 2024.

“Today, 3,000-pound gas vehicles driven by humans are used to deliver 3-pound packages billions of times per year,” said Keller Rinaudo Cliffton, CEO and co-founder of Zipline. “It’s expensive, slow, and bad for the environment. This decision means that the NHS can start to transition delivery to solutions that are 10 times as fast, less expensive, and zero emission. This service will be delivered at a fraction of the cost of the existing solution and will help drive financial savings to the NHS in the longer term.”

Meanwhile, Wing, a subsidiary of Google parent Alphabet, announced last week that the FAA approved it for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations without visual observers (VOs), or humans who are stationed below the flight path to keep an eye on the drones. Coincidentally, the approval is a summary grant based on BVLOS exemptions the regulator awarded in September to four firms—including, you guessed it, Zipline.

Zipline Expands to the UK

As of mid-December, Zipline drones have made more than 850,000 deliveries. The company says it completes a trip every 70 seconds. Zipline got its start operating in sub-Saharan Africa before expanding to the U.S. and Japan, picking up customers such as Walmart, Pfizer, and Cleveland Clinic. But it hasn’t yet reached the U.K.

The firm hopes to change that by working with the NHS, Europe’s largest employer, and Apian, a healthcare logistics provider co-founded by a team of former NHS doctors. Apian’s flagship product is an automated, on-demand delivery system that will allow Zipline to easily fulfill orders placed by the NHS.

The new service will provide on-demand drone delivery of prescriptions, wound care, and other medical products to more than 30 hospitals, general practitioners, and care homes across the region.

“I’ve seen firsthand the impact that running out of supplies can have on patient health outcomes,” said Dr. Christopher Law, medical director and co-founder of Apian. “Healthcare should benefit from on-demand delivery, much like consumers now do in their personal lives. Delivering critical products with drones, where and when they’re most needed, will improve supply chain efficiency and give doctors, nurses, and clinicians more time to focus on the most important thing—their patients.”

Zipline will build a hub for the service near the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Northumberland, England. From there, its autonomous, fixed-wing drones—or Zips, as the company refers to them—will travel up to 130 sm (113 nm) round trip in most weather conditions, floating packages gently to the ground using parachutes.

The Zips use technologies, such as artificial intelligence and an acoustic detect and avoid (DAA) system, to navigate around tall buildings or other aircraft. Each is equipped with redundant safety systems and supervised by trained personnel, who can track flights and intervene when needed.

Zipline intends to centralize inventory of the NHS’ most frequently ordered products: prescription medicines, wound care products, and joint replacement implants, to name a few. These will be flown to Hexham General Hospital, Wansbeck General Hospital, Haltwhistle War Memorial Hospital, and other regional health facilities, within minutes of receiving an order.

Eventually, the partners expect to deliver to “significantly more” health facilities. According to Zipline, the service should help providers move away from last-minute logistics to reduce the number of canceled procedures, which could reduce wait times. It’s expected to launch next year with Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.

“This expansion with Zipline and Apian is an exciting next step as we strive to improve services for the hundreds of thousands of patients we serve,” said James Mackey, CEO of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. “We believe this innovative technology could be used to improve healthcare outcomes, save money, and eliminate supply chain complexities, and we’re keen to get started.”

Wing—which primarily delivers items such as food, wellness products, and household essentials—is working with Apian to add its own drones to U.K. medical logistics networks. The two plan to deliver pharmacy items, lab samples, and medical devices and supplies in South Dublin, Ireland, as early as this year.

However, the Alphabet subsidiary remains heavily focused on the U.S. market.

Wing Sheds Operational Restrictions

As Zipline adds a previously announced Wing partner, Wing is leveraging a previously announced Zipline approval to bolster its own operations.

The company on Friday said the FAA approved its DAA tech for BVLOS operations without VOs, allowing its drones to use ADS-B instead. The new permissions extend to the airspace above Dallas, where Wing serves customers within a 6-mile radius out of a Walmart Supercenter in the suburb of Frisco.

The firm said the exemption will allow it to remove VOs across Dallas and similar airspace around other major U.S. cities. Following Zipline’s landmark flight last month, Wing will be one of the first drone delivery providers to fly unencumbered by VOs.

“Overall, the FAA’s approval for DAA and recognition of broader strategic deconfliction and [uncrewed traffic management] applications will allow us to operate more efficiently and work toward scaled operations nationwide,” Wing wrote in a blog post. “Starting with communities across the Dallas-Fort Worth area, this action supports our path toward expanding our service across the U.S.”

Wing’s approval is a summary grant, which is essentially a streamlined authorization for a “copycat” company with similar infrastructure, aircraft, and technology to those who have already been approved. In lieu of a final rule on BVLOS operations, the FAA expects to use summary grants to enable early services without overbearing restrictions. Amazon Prime Air, for example, is another recipient.

It’s unclear which of the initial approvals Wing piggybacked off of to obtain its new permissions. But of the four firms to receive exemptions, Zipline’s is the most similar—it too was permitted to replace VOs with its DAA system in a few key markets.

“Our holistic approach to BVLOS flight has been used for commercial deliveries on three continents for several years,” Wing said in its blog post. “It is grounded in avoiding potential conflict before flights ever take off and utilizes in-flight DAA to add an additional layer of safety. Wing has demonstrated the effectiveness and safety of this approach with operational flight data, extensive simulation, and flight test.”

While not as flashy as an international expansion, the removal of VOs could be a big deal for Wing. Without the need to station humans on the ground, the company could greatly expand its delivery range while lowering operational costs. It’s one of the few paths to scale available to industry players, who are just beginning to turn visions of drone-filled skies into reality.

The updates from Wing and Zipline may also have implications for smaller industry players and startups. Having each made several hundred thousand deliveries, the two firms already have a leg up on the competition. Now, the rich are getting richer—and lesser known rivals may need to do even more to catch up.

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The agreement was signed by U.K. Defense Secretary Grant Shapps, Japan defense minister Minoru Kihara, and Italy defense minister Guido Crosetto in Tokyo, coming one year after the formation of the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP). 

Through the collaboration, the three countries will share in the design and delivery of the stealth fighter, which they say will boost their individual combat air industrial capabilities.

• DOD: China’s Military Catching Up with Western Air Forces

“Treaty signed,” Shapps said on X (formerly Twitter). “Working with our Italian and Japanese allies, we will build the supersonic stealth fighter we need to combat the threats of a more dangerous age.”

Shapps said in a statement: “Our world-leading combat aircraft programme aims to be crucial to global security, and we continue to make hugely positive progress toward delivery of the new jets to our respective air forces in 2035.” 

GCAP will be based in the U.K. and led by BAE Systems in partnership with Leonardo UK, MBDA UK, along with hundreds of companies. The GCAP government headquarters’ first CEO will come from Japan, and the first leader of the counterpart representing industry, which will also be headquartered in the U.K., will come from Italy. 

Each country will have an equal 33 percent stake in GCAP, Reuters reported.

“Months of negotiations have allowed for a balanced compromise,” the Italian Defense Ministry said.

Around 9,000 people are working on GCAP worldwide, and the program will draw on more than 1,000 suppliers from partner nations, BAE Systems said in a statement.

Treaty signed

The UK will headquarter the development of one of the most advanced fighter jets in history.

Working with our Italian and Japanese allies, we will build the supersonic stealth fighter we need to combat the threats of a more dangerous age. pic.twitter.com/IIcugKc0fR

— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) December 14, 2023

In the U.K, more than 3,000 jobs are already focused on future air capability, according to the British Ministry of Defense.

“GCAP is a hugely significant program for the security, political, and economic prosperity for Italy, Japan, and U.K. and through effective knowledge and technology transfer will help to evolve and deliver important sovereign combat air capability in each nation for generations to come,” BAE Systems said.

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The long-endurance uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), manufactured by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. and based on GA-ASI’s MQ-9B UAV variant, can be flown anywhere in the world while operated from RAF Waddington in England.

“In addition to accepting the operational roles currently undertaken by Reaper, which has provided exceptional service on operations around the clock for over 15 years, Protector will be certified to stringent NATO safety and certification standards, allowing it to operate in the U.K. and European civilian airspace,” the RAF said in a statement.

• READ MORE: Royal Air Force Receives First Protector RG Mk1 Combat Drone

Trials will include ground testing of satellite links and taxi procedures, as well as takeoff and landing procedures, RAF said.

Earlier this month, the RAF took delivery of the first of 16 ordered Protectors and said receiving the remaining combat drones will come in phases. It is expected to be in service in 2024.

“The [intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance] capability team will be working with 56 Squadron, our test and evaluation experts, [which] will put the aircraft through its paces to ensure it is ready for operational service next year, whilst the newly reformed 31 Squadron will focus on preparing to operate the aircraft in service,” said Air Commodore Alex Hicks, who is the senior officer responsible for the Protector program. “This is an important milestone for the program, Air Force, and wider defense, and I am delighted to see Protector at RAF Waddington.”

The Protector boasts a wingspan of nearly 80 feet, a maximum takeoff weight of 12,500 pounds, and is capable of carrying 500 pounds of Paveway IV laser-guided bombs and Brimstone 3 missiles.

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The long-endurance uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), which is based on GA-ASI’s MQ-9B UAV variant, is expected to enter into service next year, bringing with it “a step change” in service capability, according to the RAF. The UAV can be flown anywhere in the world while operated from RAF Waddington in England.

The Protector boasts a wingspan of nearly 80 feet, a maximum takeoff weight of 12,500 pounds, and is capable of carrying 500 pounds of Paveway IV laser-guided bombs and Brimstone 3 missiles.

• READ MORE: Air Force, Marines Train To Make MQ-9 Reaper Expeditionary

“Equipped with a suite of advanced equipment and precision strike weapons, Protector will provide critical armed surveillance capability and will be able to deploy against potential adversaries around the globe,” the RAF said. “The aircraft will also be able to fly in busy unsegregated airspace thanks to ‘detect and avoid’ technology with a potential endurance of over 40 hours.” 

Earlier this year, the first wave of RAF pilots, sensor operators, and mission intelligence coordinators began training on Protector operations at GA-ASI’s Flight Test & Training Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Last month, RAF instructors began training with RAF-specific material and mission scenarios at the facility.

The Protector drone is the successor to the Reaper MQ-9A variant of the MQ-9B SkyGuardian, which is also deployed by the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command.

Sovereign Capabilities

Unlike the largely U.S.-controlled MQ-9A Reaper variant the RAF deployed more than a decade ago as an urgent operational requirement in Afghanistan, the planned purchase of 16 MQ-9B Protector drones will include sovereign capabilities fully owned by the U.K., Janes reported. 

• READ MORE: India to Make Massive Purchase of US Reaper Drones

Earlier this year, the U.K. signed an international cooperation program agreement with Belgium, which has also purchased a MQ-9B variant in an arrangement that allows the two countries to work together on issues including certification, airworthiness, and training.

“This agreement further cements the close relationship between the U.K. and Belgium and affirms our joint commitment to the strategic unity and defense of Europe and NATO,” Air Commodore Alex Hicks, assistant chief of staff for RAF Capability Delivery Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance.

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Royal Mail, the U.K.’s oldest parcel carrier, and Skyports Drone Services, the cargo delivery arm of drone infrastructure provider Skyports, on Tuesday announced the launch of a drone delivery project on the Orkney Islands, north of the Scottish coast. The service is initially slated for a three-month trial but is expected to become the country’s first permanent drone delivery operation under current regulatory frameworks.

“We are proud to be working with Skyports to deliver via drone to some of the more remote communities that we serve in the U.K.,” said Chris Paxton, head of drone trials at Royal Mail. “Using a fully electric drone supports Royal Mail’s continued drive to reduce emissions associated with our operations, whilst connecting the island communities we deliver to.”

The Orkney I-Port operation launched in July as a collaboration between Royal Mail, Skyports, the Orkney Islands Council Harbour Authority, and Scottish regional airline Loganair. The daily mail distribution service currently flies between three islands.

Letters and parcels are transported from Royal Mail’s Kirkwall delivery office to the town of Stromness, where Skyports delivers them to Royal Mail staff on the islands of Graemsay and Hoy via drone. Postal workers then collect the cargo and follow their normal delivery routes.

The weather and landscape of the Orkney Islands can impede traditional delivery methods like ferries. But Royal Mail says the geography also allows the company to conduct extended visual line of sight flights with less remote oversight than would typically be required.

The flights mark the first operation between Skyports and its partner, São Paulo-based Speedbird Aero. The partners will deploy Speedbird’s DLV-2 multirotor drone, which has a payload capacity of 35 pounds and a range of about 10 sm (8.7 nm). In addition to being able to fly in harsh weather, the drone figures to improve delivery speed and reduce emissions.

“By leveraging drone technology, we are revolutionizing mail services in remote communities, providing more efficient and timely delivery, and helping to reduce the requirement for emissions-producing vehicles,” said Alex Brown, director of Skyports Drone Services.

For the first three months of the project, costs will be covered by the U.K. Department of Transport’s Freight Innovation Fund. After that, though, the partners will be on their own.

The Next Generation of Parcel Delivery

For remote island communities like Orkney, drones represent a potential game-changer for delivery of mail and crucial items like medical supplies. The concept is one Royal Mail has now pursued for years.

In 2020, the company partnered with a consortium of U.K. drone firms and became the country’s first parcel carrier to complete a drone delivery that December. The following May, it ramped up those efforts with autonomous drone parcel delivery and inter-island test kit delivery trials to the Isles of Scilly. And in October 2021, it successfully completed yet another drone initiative, this time a two-week autonomous trial between the Orkney Islands.

In May 2022, Royal Mail announced its short-term vision: 50 postal drone routes launched over the next three years in partnership with drone logistics provider Windracers Group. The Orkney Islands and Isles of Scilly were proposed as initial sites alongside the Hebrides and Shetland Islands. Routes will at first be supported by up to 200 drones, but the ultimate goal is to deploy as many as 500.

Royal Mail is also reducing its fleet emissions by electrifying its ground transport. In 2021, it announced an initiative to ensure all company cars will be 100 percent electric by 2030. It provided an update on that effort in July, revealing that its delivery fleet already includes 5,000 electric vans.

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The test flight of the Dornier 228 retrofitted with ZeroAvia’s ZA-600 hydrogen-electric engine is a cornerstone of the HyFlyer II development program that aims to develop a 600kW powertrain that’s able to support zero-emission flight of aircraft with up to 19 seats. The development project is partially funded by the UK Government’s Aerospace Technology Institute’s (ATI) program.

“This is a major moment, not just for ZeroAvia, but for the aviation industry as a whole, as it shows that true zero-emission commercial flight is only a few years away,” Val Miftakhov, founder and CEO of ZeroAvia, said in a statement.

• READ MORE: ZeroAvia, AGS Airports Enter Hydrogen Fuel Partnership

The aircraft’s left wing was retrofitted with the ZA-600 engine, which operated in tandem with a single Honeywell TPE-331 stock engine on the right wing.

“In this testing configuration, the hydrogen-electric powertrain comprises two fuel cell stacks, with lithium-ion battery packs providing peak power support during take-off and adding additional redundancy for safe testing. In this testbed configuration, hydrogen tanks and fuel cell power generation systems were housed inside the cabin,” ZeroAvia added in the statement. “In a commercial configuration, external storage would be used and the seats restored.” 

• READ MORE: ZeroAvia Acquires Hydrogen-Fuel Cell Developer HyPoint

The flight, according to the company, was a success.

“All systems performed as expected,” ZeroAvia said. “This is the largest ZeroAvia engine tested to date, and places the company on the direct path to a certifiable configuration to be finalized and submitted for certification in 2023, with this program also serving as key to unlocking speedy technology development for larger aircraft.”

The January 19 test flight is the latest in a string of recent advancements for the U.K.-based company.  

In November, ZeroAvia and AGS Airports announced an agreement to explore the development of infrastructure that will allow hydrogen fuel for aircraft traveling between Aberdeen and Glasgow airports in Scotland.

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That’s according to David Coward, vice president and general manager of L3Harris Airline Academy, part of the company’s Training Services division. “COVID was a big challenge for us, and during that we had to trim the business,” Coward said in an interview with FLYING on Friday.

Coward came into his current role about three years ago, in 2020, and he has since worked with the internal team to streamline the company’s offerings and physical footprint. This included a divesture from its location in Ponte de Sor, Portugal, which was finalized in September.

The move returns the academy to essentially three bases of operation, the London Training Centre, near Gatwick Airport (EGKK) in Crawley, U.K., facilities at Cranfield University on the airport (EGTC) near Milton Keynes, U.K., and its stateside location at Orlando Sanford International Airport (KSFB) in Florida. L3Harris has conducted FAA-based courses towards the airline transport pilot certificate or flight instructor certificate.

Essentially, for cadets training under an EASA or U.K. CAA course, ground training takes place at Gatwick, the single-engine VFR flight portion of the course is flown in Florida, and the multiengine and complex IFR work is completed in Cranfield. Completion of the course’s APS course—what used to be the MCC or multi-crew coordination course—finishes up at the Gatwick training facility.

Coward points to the Orlando location as being a draw for students, whether studying within the company’s FAA or EASA/U.K.-based courses. “Florida was always in people’s passions,” he said. “The weather location down in Florida is fantastic, we get great flying, great weather, the timelines and the amount of flying that our customers are able to do is just night and day compared to what we could do in Europe.

“Although we plan about 32 weeks in Florida, most of our students at the moment are now tracking about five or six weeks ahead of that.”

Two Programs, Two Entry Points

L3Harris has created two pathways for pilots seeking to complete certificates with the academy—one, a fully integrated program for cadets starting from scratch, and one that allows for those who have completed some work already to join the program.

“The Integrated ATPL [airline transport pilot license] packages L3Harris’ Airline Academy’s commercial pilot training with accommodation throughout the U.S. flight training phase, based in Orlando, Florida, training assurance and access to its Graduate Placement Pool,” said the company in a release. “Optional accommodation packages will be available for new trainees during the U.K.-based ground school and advanced training phases.

“The Flying Start ATPL provides direct entry to the company’s flight training programme for those who have already completed their theoretical knowledge ATPL exams. It similarly packages accommodation during its U.S. flight training phase, training assurance, and access to the Graduate Placement Pool.”

With the move, Coward said that the company is also looking to price its products correctly for the economic realities worldwide. “In response to cost of living increases across the globe we have launched two ATPL programmes at price points we believe reflect the value of our training proposition,” he said. “Our prices now include accommodation throughout the U.S.-based flight training phase, training assurance, providing peace of mind should the trainees need additional training and access to our world-renowned Graduate Placement Pool, providing graduates career services and support as they look to start their airline career. This makes our pricing clear and transparent.”

Flight Data Monitoring in the Fleet

L3Harris also took advantage of the downtime created by the pandemic to integrate one of its other company strengths—flight data monitoring—into the training fleet. “What we’ve done is fit all of our aircraft with wireless data transmitters and set up a [way] to enable all of our flight data to be analyzed using [company systems.]” It’s a commercial standard flight data monitoring program, taking the process a level above that of off-the-shelf flight tracking and trend monitoring.

“[We’re] trying to bring all of that data journey back into our portfolio, trying to use that data as a common thread to enhance our customers’ outcomes,” said Coward. He envisions the utilization of the data in three steps for the academy. First, from a safety perspective, for trend and event tracking from the outset. Second, for a debriefing perspective, particularly, allowing for the thorough postflight review of solo flights for which there has been little concrete data other than what the student self-reports. Third, Coward sees the use of the data beginning next year in improving operational performance, including reduction of fuel use and tracking of the academy’s carbon footprint and CO2 emissions.

“We’ll be looking at how we use this data to make ourselves a more efficient operation,” he said. “We won an award at the beginning of the year from Air Transport World for Technology Achievement in 2022.”

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ZeroAvia will obtain a supplemental type certificate (STC) to retrofit the Grand Caravan with its ZA600 zero-emission powertrain. This would allow the company to target commercial passenger and cargo operators to adopt its powerplant solution, which it says will be more environmentally friendly and quieter than conventional propeller-driven aircraft.

Val Miftakhov, the founder and CEO of the UK and U.S.-based company, expressed enthusiasm for this expanded partnership with Textron Aviation, providing a platform for his company to test and launch its products.

“The famous Cessna Grand Caravan is on track to be one of the first airframes operating commercial services—both cargo and passenger—with hydrogen-electric, zero-emission engines,” Miftakhov said. “We applaud the visionary leadership of Textron Aviation in joining us to help transform a much-loved mainstay of sub-regional aviation into a symbol of a sustainable transformation in aviation.”

Expanding Partnership Network

This partnership with Textron Aviation joins the network of other aircraft OEMs and operators that have committed to using ZeroAvia’s powertrain technology for future purposes. The company plans to build the ZA600 hydrogen-electric powerplant that targets 9- to 19-seat aircraft operating over a 300-nm mission by 2025. After that, it wants to launch a higher-powered engine, the ZA2000. 

A pair of the ZA2000s will allow a 40- to 80-seat aircraft to fly cargo and passengers up to 700-nm and be operational by 2027, the company said.

• READ MORE: ZeroAvia to Retrofit CRJ Series Regional Jets with Hydrogen-Electric Powertrains

So far, ZeroAvia has partnered with Dornier to retrofit a 19-seat Do 228 with its powerplant. That is taking place at the ZeroAvia R&D location at the Cotswold Airport (EGBP) in the UK, and the company said in its statement that it hopes to make test flights in a matter of weeks.

Every Expert Isn’t Sold on Hydrogen–Yet 

Though some energy stakeholders question the viability of hydrogen-electric powertrains to significantly reduce carbon emissions compared to alternatives like sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), ZeroAvia says its project is a “practical, holistic, and economically attractive solution to aviation’s growing climate change impact.” The engines use fuel cells to generate electricity, which powers electric motors to turn the propeller(s). ZeroAvia says hydrogen-electric systems produce only water vapor as a by-product at temperatures that enable the management of contrails.

• READ MORE: How Green Is Hydrogen Fuel?

In order to reduce emissions to meet an industry-touted 2050 net-zero goal, SAF would be needed to cut up to 65 percent of emissions, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in a study released last October. Electric and hydrogen solutions would only contribute 13 percent to the desired reduction, the report said. However, it is essential to note that according to the International Energy Agency, at present, operators globally use less than 0.1 percent of SAF, because it remains in short supply. Therefore, if ZeroAvia can meet its deadline—though it supposedly has a smaller market share—its solution could be more immediate. 

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Now, in a bid to put its newest airplane in front of some of its best potential customers, the company flew one of the G800 test platforms from Savannah, Georgia (KSAV), to its Farnborough Service Center at EGLF in Farnborough, U.K., on July 15.

Because the test aircraft, N800G, had met at least one of its long-range test goals—a flight of more than eight hours and ops beyond the M_MO of Mach 0.925 and 51,000 feet msl—it could make the milestone journey.

“To take the G800 on this trans-Atlantic trip so close to first flight is extraordinary,” said Mark Burns, president of Gulfstream. “Thanks to our strategic planning and the investments Gulfstream has made in our new aircraft programs, we are able to fly the G800 with remarkable efficiency and bring the aircraft directly to customers early in the flight test program, as we have in Farnborough. 

“The Gulfstream Farnborough Service Center is one of our newest and most modern, and it’s fitting that the G800 has made its international debut here.” The center boasts 225,000 square feet of facilities space, able to accommodate up to 13 of the biggest models in the Gulfstream lineup. It opened recently—in summer 2020.

The Trip: By the Numbers

G800 Preliminary Specs

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