Flying on hydrogen from Rotterdam The Hague Airport: almost ready for boarding

Wilma van Wijk, CEO Rotterdam The Hague Airport (© Samantha Bosdijk Photography)

New technologies and fuels are being researched all over the world to make flying cleaner and more sustainable. At Rotterdam The Hague Airport, a partnership is working on making the first hydrogen-powered commercial European passenger flights possible. And Rotterdam The Hague Innovation Airport is an essential partner.

Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTHA) is the regional airport for the Rotterdam and The Hague area. RTHA handles around 2 million passengers annually and connects to 50 European destinations. Besides being an important European hub, Rotterdam The Hague Airport is also a testing ground where plenty of work is being done on the aviation of the future. RTHA is an international test site for sustainable innovations in hydrogen and battery-electric aviation and is part of the Royal Schiphol Group.

Rotterdam The Hague Innovation Airport (RHIA) plays a crucial role in this: a community of companies, research institutes and governments working together towards a cleaner, quieter and sustainable future for aviation. One of RHIA’s programmes, the Fieldlab Next Aviation, is researching new propulsion techniques, operational procedures and smarter propellers and rotor blades. And flying on hydrogen. The European TULIPS project, for example, will soon carry out the first hydrogen tests at the airport. The focus will be on delivering, storing and refuelling hydrogen. The first ZeroAvia hydrogen-powered flight is expected to take place in 2025 and the first liquid hydrogen-powered flight should be operated in 2028.

 ‘Hydrogen is a potentially sustainable alternative to flying on kerosene. This collaboration will help us demonstrate and validate our airport’s hydrogen infrastructure and the associated procedures. This will accelerate the transition towards zero-emission aviation.’

Wilma van Dijk, CEO of Rotterdam The Hague Airport, about the plans for hydrogen powered flights.

Rotterdam The Hague Airport is the launching base for many innovative and sustainable projects (© Eric Fecken)

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