Swiss Team Building Hydrogen-Powered Airplane for 2028 Global Flight

TapTechNews August 12th news, a team led by Swiss explorer Bertrand Piccard is building a hydrogen-powered airplane named Climate Impulse in Les Sables-d'Olonne, France. The airplane is designed to fly continuously around the equator for 9 consecutive days and is entirely driven by green hydrogen energy, aiming to be the first airplane to circumnavigate the globe using hydrogen power. The target flight date is set for 2028, and the test is scheduled to begin in 2026.

It is worth noting that Piccard is famous for his pioneering flights around the globe in a hot air balloon and the solar-powered airplane Solar Impulse. However, he asserted that solar-powered airplanes are not suitable for commercial aviation. He explained that if the airplane is larger, a larger battery is needed, and part of the energy will be wasted on carrying the heavy battery. So, it is more efficient to use hydrogen at this time, Piccard emphasized.

This project is described as a climate action adventure, aiming to restore people's confidence in technological solutions benefiting the public and demonstrating the potential of green hydrogen as a sustainable fuel in the aviation industry.

TapTechNews noticed that the concept art design of Climate Impulse is quite different from the shape of traditional airplanes. This airplane is basically built around hydrogen tanks, Piccard emphasized. The unique design of the airplane includes a small central cockpit flanked by two large liquid hydrogen tanks. A slender wing connects these components, and each liquid hydrogen tank has a front propeller and a tail fin to assist in propulsion and stability.

However, the main challenge is to keep the liquid hydrogen at an extremely low temperature close to absolute zero during the 9-day flight. The main technical challenge is to build an airplane around two fuel tanks filled with liquid hydrogen, which remain at -253°C and power the electric motor through a fuel cell, explained Raphael Dinelli, who is in charge of the design and construction of the Climate Impulse. For this, the team has been researching to manufacture revolutionary thermal tanks that can maintain the normal state of the fuel throughout the flight.

The construction of the Climate Impulse relies heavily on advanced materials and technologies and is expected to take two years to complete.