The companies signed a memorandum of understanding for the purchase of three hydrogen conversion kits for the airline’s ATR 72-600s. The agreement also calls for Universal Hydrogen to provide green hydrogen to fuel and guarantee operations.
Green hydrogen is one of the great promises for decarbonizing the industry in the long term, as it considerably reduces the environmental impact of operations. While great efforts are being made for the introduction of sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen could be one of the ultimate solutions to the emission of greenhouse gases during a flight.
Currently, the French regional airline Amelia serves around 500 destinations and its flights have an average duration of 90 minutes. Undoubtedly, the addition of conversion kits to its ATR 72-600s is a major step towards decarbonizing its operations. In fact, in November 2021, the company launched its Amelia Green program, whose perspectives are based on three main axes:
Data: optimization of the existing operational tool with intelligent use of all the data we collect (better flight paths in particular).
Use of sustainable aviation fuels, which reduce CO2 emissions by up to 80%.
Supporting and incorporating technological advances: electric aircraft, hydrogen (fuel cells, propulsion), hybrids, etc.
In addition, to support the conversion of Amelia’s Paris-based regional aircraft, Universal Hydrogen will use its engineering center located in Toulouse, France. “The engineering center will enable the development of conversion kits to retrofit regional aircraft with a hydrogen fuel cell propulsion system for Amelia, as well as the development of modular storage capsules for hydrogen distribution to airports,” said a company statement.
Paul Eremenko, co-founder and CEO of Universal Hydrogen, stated, “This commitment by Amelia to power its fleet with green hydrogen is a harbinger of a true zero-emission future for regional aviation. France has been a world leader in achieving sustainability goals in its transportation networks, and this important step demonstrates that regional aviation has a bright future as part of the solution rather than part of the problem.”
For his part, Alain Regourd, president of Amelia, said the company “is proud to be Universal Hydrogen’s first airline customer in France, which demonstrates our entrepreneurial DNA and our strong drive to have a positive impact on our environment. Of course, it is also imperative that our company is the regional airline of choice for French travelers. To achieve this, our routes must meet their needs and our products and services must align with their values. After launching ‘Amelia Green’, we proactively sought companies to work with to decarbonize our fleet. With the help of Universal Hydrogen, Amelia is leading the way with carbon-free aircraft and becoming a benchmark for sustainability in the French aviation industry.”
Cover photo: @icare_spotter via https://flyamelia.com/
