Beyond Aero completes preliminary review of hydrogen-electric business jet

Beyond Aero has announced that it has completed the preliminary design review (PDR) of its hydrogen-electric business jet and is advancing toward CS-25 and Part 25 certification from the FAA and EASA, respectively.The company states that the review’s completion also concludes the jet’s preliminary design phase. It claims that it confirms the integration of hydrogen storage, electric propulsion, thermal management, fuel cell system and safety systems into a certifiable aircraft architecture. A wind tunnel test campaign was used to confirm the aerodynamic assumptions and integrations. Beyond Aero will now work on detailed design, engineering and the definition of it’s validation plan.
“The completion of the Preliminary Design Review demonstrates that a certifiable hydrogen-powered business aircraft is achievable,” said Beyond Aero CEO Eloa Guillotin. “Our objective is to develop a new business aircraft tailored to the constraints of hydrogen-electric propulsion, while meeting the performance, safety, and operational standards expected in business aviation.”
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The jet has a twin-propfan configuration and is powered by fuel-cell electric propulsion. The gaseous hydrogen it’s powered on will be stored in externally mounted tanks integrated above the wing structure. Beyond Aero claims that the configuration avoids the complexity of cryogenic liquid storage while allowing for natural ventilation. The configuration should also be compatible with existing airport refuelling infrastructure, being designed to operate using both 700-bar hydrogen infrastructure and 350-bar mobile refuelling systems
Beyond Aero is developing hydrogen ground infrastructure alongside its hydrogen-electric business jet. It has signed more than 10 memoranda of understanding with airport operators and over 16 with hydrogen production and distribution partners for its hydrogen supply.