Atlanta Airport, Delta and Airbus to Study Hydrogen Fuel Feasibility

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is partnering with Delta Air Lines, aircraft manufacturer Airbus and hydrogen fuel cell developer Plug Power to explore the possibility of refueling hydrogen for air travel at the airport. busiest in the world.

Delta and Airbus had already teamed up to study the potential of hydrogen fuel. Hartsfield-Jackson has now joined an Atlanta-based study expected to be completed by the end of 2026, as well as other studies planned by Airbus in Houston, Texas, and Canada.

The airline industry is under pressure to make flying more sustainable and reduce carbon dioxide emissions and fossil fuel consumption.

But finding a safe and viable substitute for jet fuel poses a significant challenge.

Hydrogen has shown great potential as an alternative to climate-damaging fossil fuels, particularly in the trucking sector and other hard-to-decarbonize sectors of the global economy. Although it is the most abundant element in the universe and its only byproduct when burned is water, hydrogen rarely exists alone on Earth.

Currently, the process of producing hydrogen that can be used as a fuel is expensive and requires a lot of energy, energy that must come from other renewables like solar or wind to be considered truly green.

Airbus is working to develop a hydrogen-powered commercial aircraft, with hopes of entering service in 2035. Plug Power, meanwhile, operates a hydrogen production facility at Woodbine, near the coast of Georgia.

The goal of the Atlanta study is to examine the viability of hydrogen for future flights at Hartsfield-Jackson, as well as the infrastructure and safety requirements that would be necessary.

Hartsfield-Jackson provides its study layout and organization plan, as well as information on future airport developments.

“If hydrogen proves to be a viable alternative, ATL will explore options to update infrastructure to implement the new technology,” Michael Smith, Hartsfield-Jackson deputy chief executive, said in a statement. written statement.

It is part of an Airbus “Hydrogen Hub at Airports” program aimed at “relaunching” research into infrastructure needs, with other agreements in France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden and the United Kingdom. , according to the aircraft manufacturer.

“The journey to prepare airport infrastructure to support hydrogen and low-carbon aviation begins on the ground with pre-feasibility studies like this,” said Karine Guénan, Vice President of Airbus ZEROe Ecosystem, in a written statement.

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