An innovative aviation H₂ handling and refueling project, led by Airbus and supported by academic partners, airport operators and leading H₂-industry companies, has been launched to demonstrate small-scale liquid H₂ aircraft ground operations at three European airports.

The urge to decarbonize our economy and to develop Europe’s energy independence is leading to a major trend of H₂ for mobility and stationary applications. H₂ will also be a solution to decarbonize short- and medium-haul aviation and will be crucial for the advancement of low-carbon aviation operations.

The GOLIAT (Ground Operations of LIquid H₂ AircrafT) project will receive funding of €10.8 MM from the EU’s Horizon Europe Framework Program, over a duration of four years, and will demonstrate how high-flow liquid H₂ (LH₂) handling and refueling technologies can be developed and used safely and reliably for airport operations.

The GOLIAT consortium consists of 10 partners from eight countries: Airbus (France, Germany, UK), Chart Industries (Czech Republic, Italy), TU Delft (Netherlands), Leibniz University Hannover (Germany), Royal Schiphol Group (Netherlands), Rotterdam The Hague Airport (Netherlands), Vinci Airports (France, Portugal), Stuttgart Airport (Germany), H2FLY (Germany), and Budapest Airport (Hungary).

The group will support the aviation industry’s adoption of LH₂ transportation and energy storage solutions by:

• Developing and demonstrating LH₂ refueling technologies scaled-up for future large commercial aircraft
• Demonstrating small-scale LH₂ aircraft ground operations at airports
• Developing the standardization and certification framework for future LH₂ operations
• Assessing the sizing and economics of the H₂ value chains for airports.

As a clean and efficient fuel, LH₂ offers a promising solution for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with airport operations and their dependence on fossil fuels. LH₂’s high energy density enables long-range travel for aircraft, yet there are many steps to the widespread deployment of H₂ at airports, including the need to better understand the operational, regulatory, economic and safety impacts, as well as the capacity and performance of technologies.

Karine Guenan, Vice President of ZEROe Ecosystem, Airbus said, “We continue to believe that H₂ will be an important fuel for the future of short-haul aviation. We welcome the opportunity to help build the operating case for the widespread daily use of liquid H₂ at airports.”

Josef Kallo, co-founder and CEO, H2FLY said, “Leveraging our experience in the HEAVEN project, where we completed the world’s first piloted flight of a liquid H₂-powered electric aircraft, we look forward to contributing our expertise in LH₂ operations to GOLIAT. We believe in the potential of H₂ to transform aviation and are committed to supporting its adoption for a sustainable future. GOLIAT marks another important step in our journey toward decarbonizing the aviation industry, and we are excited to be part of this important initiative.”

Jill Evanko, CEO and President, Chart Industries, Inc. said, “It is a privilege to work with the esteemed GOLIAT Consortium partners and progress decarbonization in heavy transport through the value chain,” stated Jill Evanko, Chart’s CEO and President. “With over 158 years of experience in H₂ technology, process and equipment, we are excited to share our expertise to further progress the liquid H₂ application in mobility and transport as well as the associated infrastructure.”

Alexei Sharpanskykh, Elise Bavelaar, and Pieter-Jan Proesmans, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, TU Delft said, “At Delft University of Technology, we are researching various aspects of H₂-powered aviation since this energy carrier shows great potential to reduce aviation’s climate impact. To facilitate this transition, we should develop suitable airport infrastructure and operations. As a partner in the GOLIAT project, we look forward to creating operational concepts and computational models for airport ground operations of H₂-powered aircraft, considering the airline’s perspective. This way, we can help airports and airlines prepare for future H₂ aircraft and contribute to a more sustainable aviation ecosystem.”

Richard Hanke-Rauschenbach, Head of Institute of Electric Power Systems, Leibniz University Hannover said, “We are very pleased to join the GOLIAT team and to contribute our expertise on techno-economics of green LH₂ supply infrastructures to the project. Such demonstrators are not only an important step towards making H₂-powered aviation a reality, but also provide valuable insights for the future development of a cost effective and reliable LH₂ supply chain. Identifying the requirements for the infrastructure as early as possible is crucial to the success of our joint efforts towards a more climate-friendly air transport system.”

Wilma van Dijk, CEO Rotterdam The Hague Airport said, “We are very delighted to be a partner of the GOLIAT project and to host one of the demonstrations at Rotterdam The Hague Airport. As part of the Royal Schiphol Group, we strongly believe that H₂, alongside sustainable aviation fuels and electric flight, is one of the potential energy carriers to decarbonize aviation. However, there are many challenges that need to be addressed on multiple fronts in order to fully realize the potential of H₂ aviation, including refueling of H₂ aircraft. As a regional airport, we’re at the forefront of H₂ aviation initiatives, with multiple projects underway in collaboration with various partners in our region. The GOLIAT project aligns seamlessly with our H₂ roadmap, serving as a crucial step towards the preparation and integration of H₂ aviation within our airport environment.”