About 1,800 jobs will be created in South Yorkshire by building 10 new environmentally friendly airships.
Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), a small company based in Bedford, announced on Wednesday that it had signed an agreement to provide a Spanish airline with 10 of its Airlander airships 10 of 100 passengers full of helium.
The plane, which the company says will have less than a tenth of the CO2 footprint per passenger of jet aircraft, will be built at a new green aerospace manufacturing cluster in South Yorkshire.
Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary, said the launch of the Airlander proved that the UK was at the forefront of greener “revolutionary” aviation technology.
HAV’s futuristic Airlander 10 passenger transport with conceptual cabin interior designs. Photo: Hybrid air vehicles
“Hybrid aircraft could play an important role as we move to cleaner forms of aviation, and it’s wonderful to see the UK at the forefront of technology development,” he said.
“This agreement enhances the possibility of revolutionary, manufacturing and design British Airlander 10 aircraft flying in the Spanish skies. This is further proof of how UK companies are adopting new technologies to drive growth and support jobs. highly skilled in the United Kingdom “.
The plane, which according to HAV will have a CO2 footprint per passenger of about 4.5 kg compared to about 53 kg in a jet plane, is expected to take to the skies with the Spanish company Air Nostrum in 2026.
Carlos Bertomeu, president of Air Nostrum, said: “Airlander 10 will drastically reduce emissions, which is why we have made this agreement with HAV. Sustainability, which is good news for everyone, is already a non-negotiable fact in the day-to-day operations of commercial aviation. “
Possible routes for Airlander 10 of 100 passengers include Barcelona to Palma de Mallorca. Photo: Hybrid air vehicles
The airline, which currently operates flights to Iberia, did not indicate which routes the Airlander expected to operate. HAV has previously said it expects to fly from Barcelona to Palma de Mallorca in four and a half hours.
HAV, which in the past has attracted funding from Peter Hambro, founder of Russian gold mine Petropavlovsk, and Iron Maiden leader Bruce Dickinson, said its plane was “ideal for long-distance mobility applications such as Liverpool. in Belfast and Seattle in Vancouver, which Airlander can service with a small fraction of the emissions of current air options. “
Tom Grundy, CEO of HAV, said: “Airlander is designed to provide a better future for sustainable aviation services, enable new transportation networks, and provide fast-growing options for our customers. Our partnership with Air Nostrum Group , as an airline launching airline 10, paves the way for this future. “
The vessel was originally designed as a surveillance vehicle for intelligence missions in Afghanistan. HAV claims that independent estimates put the market value of aircraft at $ 50 billion (£ 41 billion) over the next 20 years. It aims to sell 265 of its Airlander vessels during this period.
The £ 25 million Airlander 10 prototype made six test flights, some of which ended badly. It crashed in 2016 on its second test flight, following a successful inaugural 30-minute journey. HAV tweeted at the time: “The Airlander was damaged when it landed during today’s flight. There was no damage to the air or as a result of a telegraph pole, as reported. “.