VoloConnect, Flying Tigers, the Falklands & more (The Allplane Newsletter #89)
Electric Aviation
Electra has acquired Airflow! LINK.
Check out the podcast episode we did with Airflow’s founder Marc Ausman!
Advanced Air Mobility
Picture: Volocopter
Volocopter has successfully completed the first flight of its 4-seater “VoloConnect”. LINK.
Beta Technologies flew one of its electric aircraft all the way from Burlington, Vermont, to Bentonville, Arkansas. 1,400 miles, impressive! LINK.
Falcon Aviation Services and EVE announce a 35-strong order to introduce eVTOLs in Dubai. LINK.
Hydrogen
ZeroAvia is selling 100 ZA600 powertrains to MONTE Aircraf Leasing to equip Cessna Caravan, DHC-6 Twin Otter, Dornier 228 and HAL-228 aircraft. The massive retrofitting operation is expected to start in 2024. LINK.
Airbus and Wizz Air to study the potential of hydrogen operations (Quite a tall order!) LINK.
Universal Hydrogen may be converting 75 ATR 72-600 aircraft to its hydrogen capsule technology, from 2025 onwards. It *may” because the airline that would be doing it doesn’t fly yet, Connect Airlines aims to start flying soon between Toronto and several US cities. LINK.
The Air Current reports that Joby has owned H2Fly since 2021! H2Fly is developing hydrogen-powered fuel cell technology and it is a spin-off of the German aerospace research center DLR. LINK.
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)
Singapore Airlines, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and Temasek are launching SAF credits this coming July in a project in collaboration with the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) and Climate Impact X (CIX). Apparently these work a bit like carbon credits and SIA’s customers, both corporate and individual, will be able to purchase them. 1,000 SAF credits will be equivalent to 1,000 tons of SAF, which can cut carbon dioxide emission by 2,500 tonnes. LINK.
Hawaiian Airlines to evaluate the potential for SAF production in the Hawaiian archipelago jointly with Par Pacific Holdings, an energy company that operates refineries in the island state. The project seems to be at a very early stage, though. LINK.
Other interesting stuff in sustainable aviation
The EU may expand its emissions policy to cover all flights departing the Union. An overview of the implications of such move here.
The French region of Occitanie (where Toulouse is located) to support ATR’s green aviation projects with €100M. LINK (in French).
What else in aviation?
New podcast episode!
TravelX is the company behind the minting of the very first NFTicket, which was sold by Spanish airline Air Europa. Its co-founder, Facundo Díaz, was on the pod to speak about the potential of blockchain technology to make air tickets smarter. LISTEN.
Air cargo digital booking platform Freightos, whose founder was recently on the podcast, is going public via SPAC. LINK.
I published a new piece on The Points Guy, this one about commercial aviation in the Falklands, 40 years after the war. LINK.
Air Chathams is ending operations with its venerable 1950s vintage Convair. The airline’s COO was on the podcast a while back explaining how this very special airline, based, literally, at the edge of the inhabited world operates! LINK.
Former Transaero “Tiger-faced” B747 is back in the skies after 7 years in storage!