Universal Hydrogen announced it was granted a special airworthiness certificate in the experimental category by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to proceed with the first flight of its hydrogen-powered regional aircraft. The company also released video footage of successful first taxi tests of the aircraft, designed to evaluate ground handling qualities and the performance of the fuel-cell electric powertrain at low power settings and airspeeds.
The Dash 8-300 flying testbed has a megawatt-class hydrogen fuel cell powertrain installed in one of its nacelles. The powertrain is in a configuration that closely resembles the company’s first product—a conversion kit for ATR 72-600 regional airliners—which is expected to be certified and in commercial passenger service starting in 2025. Notably, Universal Hydrogen’s powertrain does not utilize a hybrid battery architecture—a major innovation—with all of the power transmitted directly from the fuel cells to the electric motor, significantly decreasing weight and lifecycle cost.
The FAA approval clears the way for the first flight of the Dash 8-300 flying testbed which will take place at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington. The aircraft will be by far the largest hydrogen fuel cell-powered airplane to take to the skies, and second as a hydrogen-powered aircraft only to the Soviet flight test in 1988 of a Tupolev Tu-155 airliner with one of its jet engines converted to burn hydrogen.
Universal Hydrogen unveiled in December 2022 first operational tests of its modular hydrogen delivery system at its engineering center in Toulouse, France. Those tests demonstrated a pragmatic, near-term, and highly scalable approach to hydrogen delivery to airports and into the aircraft using a modular capsule technology. This eliminates the need for costly new infrastructure, with any airport capable of handling cargo being hydrogen-ready. It also eliminates transfer losses and significantly speeds up hydrogen fueling operations—both significant pain points for the zero-emissions fuel.
“We are simultaneously providing a pragmatic, near-term solution for hydrogen infrastructure and delivery, as well as for converting existing passenger aircraft to use this lightweight, safe, and true-zero-emissions fuel,” said Paul Eremenko, co-founder and CEO of Universal Hydrogen. “Today’s milestones are essential, important steps to putting the industry on a trajectory to meet Paris Agreement obligations. The only alternative is curtailing aviation traffic growth to curb emissions.”
Dassault Systèmes and IBM announced an extension of their long-standing collaboration with the signature of a memorandum of understanding combining their technologies to address the sustainability challenges affecting asset-intensive industries.
In 2022, sustainability was identified by 58% of Energy and Resources CEOs as their greatest challenge, with 51% of them also considering it as a business opportunity that will drive growth. At the same time, 44% of CEOs cited a lack of insights from data as a problem. (Source: IBV 2022 CEO – Energy & Resources insights)
Today companies are confronted with not only rising energy prices but also supply chain and operational disruptions. These disruptions are due to multiple factors including geopolitical situations, an aging workforce, and climate-related risks. In response to these challenges, deploying new infrastructure quickly and efficiently as well as optimizing the operations of existing assets and extending their lifecycle is crucial. A company’s ability to harness actionable, data-driven insights is key to accelerate the transformation of assets that are safer, more efficient and more sustainable.
To help companies ensure business continuity while achieving their sustainability goals, Dassault Systèmes and IBM have decided to combine Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform and virtual twin experiences with IBM’s solutions for Asset Management, Resources Optimization, Environmental Risk Management and ESG governance.
Any organization including consulting firms or engineering companies will be able to better understand existing assets and therefore provide the transformational roadmap to modernize and optimize energy grids, wind farms, airports, water distribution systems, transportation and mobility, cities and datacenters.
A virtual twin experience of an asset is a data-enriched, evolving 3D model that replicates reality with scientific accuracy and is used to test and improve the asset’s performance virtually before doing so physically. Combining virtual twin experiences of equipment, infrastructure, value networks and territories with solutions for optimizing meteorological and green IT data, for example, will help to:
Improve collaboration and knowledge sharing between system engineering, manufacturing, and operations teams.
Make faster, safer, and more sustainable operational decisions for assets, people, and processes.
Integrate compliance considerations with respect to industry and environmental regulations from the engineering phase to the maintenance phase.
Over the coming months, Dassault Systèmes and IBM will work together to structure the details of their joint offering. Both companies will first target owners and operators of water / energy distribution and energy transmission projects, wind farms operators, airports and IT infrastructure projects that focus on datacenters.
Examples use cases that benefit from this collaboration in Energy and Civilian Infrastructure markets include:
Compute and optimize global carbon footprint during datacenter operations by automating the actions that proactively deliver the most efficient use of compute, storage, and network resources.
Enhance airport operations by leveraging asset health and maintenance information, along with global meteorological and forecasting data
Combine optimization and simulation capabilities to improve the placement of physical assets for wind farms.
Optimize utilities operations and renovations including electrical transmission, water supply and sanitation
“There is no better time to revitalize the IBM Dassault Systèmes long-term Partnership, as solving sustainability challenges requires collaboration across an advanced ecosystem of business partners. We are convinced that enriching virtual twins with real world data will enable companies to improve their operational efficiency and reduce their environment impact especially in asset intensive industries,” commented Ana Paula de Jesus Assis, chair & GM EMEA, IBM. “Throughout our own history, IBM has sought to be at the forefront of making our world a better place and our 2030 Net-Zero ambition confirms our commitment. We are developing a comprehensive and differentiated portfolio of sustainability software and consulting services, in concert with our ecosystem of partners.”
“IBM has long been a valued partner of Dassault Systèmes, and we share a deep commitment to accelerating the sustainable transformation of industries. This next step aims to help our customers reduce their environmental footprint in sectors that are urgent priorities in the context of today’s energy crisis,” said Florence Verzelen, EVP, Industry, Marketing and Sustainability, Dassault Systèmes. “The combination of IBM’s sustainability software and expertise with our 3DEXPERIENCE platform, sustainability portfolio and virtual twin experiences can offer unparalleled ways to address systemic challenges in achieving net zero ambitions and driving the circular economy.”
Aireon announced an agreement with Boeing to provide space-based data to support Boeing’s flight tracking solution, Fleet Insight.
Under this agreement, Aireon will provide real-time, streaming space-based ADS-B data through its AireonSTREAM product. AireonSTREAM provides access to the only high-fidelity, low-latency, air traffic surveillance-quality aircraft position data used by air navigation service providers around the world. The integration of AireonSTREAM into Boeing’s Fleet Insight will provide customers with the ability to track their aircraft wherever they operate in the world, eliminating coverage gaps.
“Bringing together two market-leading solutions with Aireon ADS-B data and Boeing’s Fleet Insight enables new levels of flight tracking visibility for operators,” said Don Thoma, Aireon CEO. “This collaboration highlights the power of the AireonSTREAM product to propel innovation in the aviation industry and beyond.”
“Aireon brings the capabilities and expertise needed to help power our new flight tracking solution for airlines,” said Brad Surak, vice president, Digital Aviation Solutions, Boeing Global Services. “This partnership strengthens our ability to deliver quality digital products as we continue to improve operational awareness across our Boeing Integrated Operations Center suite of solutions, enabling continued safe and efficient operations for our customers around the world.”
Boeing’s Fleet Insight is a cloud-hosted one-stop-shop that integrates flight operation data to provide airlines with an intuitive situation display of their entire fleet. Fleet Insight’s advanced analytics provides users with detailed insights into current status and performance. The solution also supports airline Global Aeronautical Distress and Safety System (GADDS) compliance, a global flight tracking mandate. Learn more about Fleet Insight here.
This new collaboration broadens the relationship between Boeing and Aireon. Since 2022, Boeing has integrated Aireon ADS-B data into its Safety Management System analytics tools.
Aiir Innovations, startup in artificial intelligence (AI) for the visual inspection of aircraft engines, has raised €2.1M ($2.16 million) in an oversubscribed investment round. Led by VC fund Borski Fund, with the participation of HearstLab Europe and existing shareholder Mainport Innovation Fund.
Founded in 2016 by a group of artificial intelligence students from the University of Amsterdams, Aiir Innovations is now a front-runner in the aviation software market, working with companies like KLM Airlines, Waygate Technologies and MTU Leasing Services, among others. Recently, Aiir Innovations was selected for the Boeing-supported Aerospace Xelerated program and won the Lufthansa Technik Philippines Startup Challenge.
Miriam Huijser
“Ensuring jet engines are inspected completely and objectively is key to ensuring the safety and efficiency of aircraft. Aiir achieves this by actively supporting human inspectors in all aspects of the job, from managing reporting requirements to an AI assistant for detecting potentially missed defects,” said Miriam Huijser, CTO and co-founder. With its software, Aiir Innovations supports inspections across the lifecycle of the engine, during maintenance, lease transitions and more.
Bart Vredebregt
Aiir Innovations will use the investment to grow its remote-first team and expand globally, and set a new standard for engine inspections. “We are excited to work with investors that have a global reach and share our vision on company culture and diversity,” Bart Vredebregt, CEO and co-founder, added.
Simone Brummelhuis, partner at Borski Fund, said, “We are thrilled to announce our investment in Aiir, a company at the forefront of the aerospace industry’s integration of artificial intelligence. This new investment is a testament to our belief in the potential of Aiir to drive innovation and progress in the field and our commitment to supporting diversity in the companies in which we invest.”
Eve Burton, executive vice president of Hearst Corporation and chairwoman of HearstLab, commented, “HearstLab is delighted to have participated in Aiir’s successful funding raise. We were extremely impressed with the Aiir management team and the product offering they have built and marketed in a relatively short period. The importance of Aiir’s potential contribution to air safety globally cannot be understated, and we are honoured to be on that journey with them. As an investor focused on female-led startups, we were particularly drawn to Aiir because of the strong presence of female leadership on the technology and product side with deep AI knowledge and experience. We look forward to collaborating closely with the management team and other investors to continue Aiir’s path to growth and success.”
Kenan Packman, general manager, HearstLab Europe, added, “HearstLab Europe’s investment in Aiir represents part of a greater effort by HearstLab to invest in female-led businesses in Europe and to grow our presence in the Netherlands and beyond. We look forward to working closely with the fantastic team at Aiir and are very pleased to have the opportunity to join Borski Fund and Mainport Innovation Fund on the Aiir cap table.”
Aircraft Performance Group (APG) signed a new 3-year agreement with the Vista Global group.
APG will continue its long-standing relationship with Vista, the number one on-demand charter company in the world, providing a complete software solution for flight feasibility, runway analysis, and weight & balance. Vista will use APG’s isFlightPossible API complemented by the class-leading iPreFlight Genesis iPad application, with plans for Vista to upgrade to iPreFlight Genesis PRO over the coming months. These applications are used across the entire Vista Members’ fleet of over 360 aircraft.
Vista has expanded its business rapidly, reporting double-digit growth in the first half of 2022, accelerated new client memberships, and has expanded across all markets globally, particularly in the United States. The group includes the leading brands VistaJet, XO and Apollo Jets; its operating partners’ network extends further to XOJET Aviation, GMJ Air Shuttle, Red Wing Aviation, and Talon Air. The groups recently supported the growing demand for its services through the acquisition of Air Hamburg in Germany and Jet Edge in the United States.
“APG is a leader in aircraft performance software for dispatchers and pilots. This, coupled with its excellent and responsive customer support, allowed us to make the very easy decision to continue our relationship,” said Cliff Berrington, director of operations at VistaJet. “We look forward to seeing how iPreFlight Genesis PRO can improve the optimization of our fleet management over the coming years.”
For over 20 years, APG has supported aircraft businesses and pilots with mission-critical flight operations software. Vista will continue to use iPreFlight Genesis as their aircraft performance solution, enabling pilots and dispatchers to determine maximum takeoff and landing weights and perform required weight and balance computations. Additionally, Vista will make use of APG’s isFlightPossible solution to get instant confirmation on the feasibility of any flight and to quickly determine the best aircraft for any mission with minimal input.
“APG is delighted to continue our longstanding relationship with Vista. This contract is a significant step in our commitment to support Vista as they expand globally with outstanding flight operations solutions that allows operators to be safe, efficient and compliant,” stated Mark Stevens, APG head of sales – EMEA. “Additionally, we are thrilled to broaden our relationship with Vista with expansion into our newest iPreFlight Genesis PRO product line. We look forward to working closely with Vista and its companies over the coming years.”
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