AEROSPACE Sustainable aviation
Tearing up the rule book
The formation of Britain’s Jet Zero Council and the start of the government-backed FlyZero
programme is making sustainable aviation a major focus for the UK. IAN RISK, Chief
Technology Officer at CFMS, explains why, to meet these ambitious ‘zero-carbon’ goals, industry needs to
tear up its current rule book.
ZeroAvia’s hydrogen-powered six-seater Piper M-class aircraft. ZeroAvia
2020 was an extremely testing year for the aerospace industry with challenges on almost all fronts. Looking
forward, there is now no such thing as ‘business as usual’ and we are all having to do things differently to
adapt to the ‘new normal’.
Farnborough 2020 was a good example. Despite not physically taking place, the great and the good from the
industry still got the chance to come together virtually via the FIA Connect online event to discuss and
debate the big issues.
With the event following hot on the heels of the government’s announcement about the formation of the Jet
Zero Council, sustainable aviation was one of the major talking points during the FIA Connect webinars. How
should the industry meet the challenge of making net-zero aircraft a reality and how can we deliver when we
do not currently have the necessary skills and capabilities?
Calling for more funding and investment in skills and capabilities can be challenging, yet that is what
industry needs. Massive technological disruptions are happening in the race for net zero in every key
industrial sector. New computational methods and tools are needed to develop this new generation of
products. In short, current technology alone cannot deliver what is required – so industry must think
differently.
To realise green concepts, such as the Electric Aviation Group’s HERA (Hybrid-Electric Regional Aircraft), is a more radical approach needed? EAG
Connecting ideas on fuel
Back at FIA Connect, there was plenty of discussion around fuel types and broad agreement that synthetic
aviation fuel is the only current option for long-haul, especially when you consider the size and costs of
adapting existing fleets. However, from an engineering design perspective, it is the opportunities for
hydrogen or electric-powered flight in the short-haul and regional market which are particularly exciting.
The Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) is leading the way here, with its Government-backed FlyZero programme –
an ambitious project to help UK aerospace develop a zero-carbon emission aircraft by 2030. Launched over the
summer, the programme will pull together expertise from across the UK industry supply chain and universities in
an initial 12-month programme to look at the design challenges and market the opportunity of zero-emission
aircraft concepts.
FlyZero programme
FlyZero aims to determine the technical and commercial viability of a future zero-carbon emission aircraft
design. We, at CFMS are looking forward to supporting the project and demonstrating how digital technology can
best be used to model and simulate design options which can help move the industry forward in a sustainable
manner.
With many other industries having already made public commitments to net-zero targets, FlyZero clearly
demonstrates that UK aerospace does not want to get left behind. However, FlyZero is more than an important
milestone on the journey to zero-carbon flight. It also represents a new departure for the industry. In the
past, the commercial barriers between businesses have meant organisations have been naturally cautious about
sharing information, so pan-industry cooperation on this scale has simply not happened without the formation of
large-scale joint ventures. FlyZero will break down those barriers by bringing together around 100 experts from
the industry as secondees to the project.
The creation of this new community is an encouraging sign for the future of the industry. It tears up the rule
book of how aerospace businesses work together and provides a new model for co-operative working which will
really leverage the skills and capabilities of our world-leading aerospace industry.
Of course, the real test will come at the end of the programme when all those people who have been seconded to
the ATI return to their day jobs. My hope is that they will bring with them the networks and connections they
have made through FlyZero and seed new ways of working within their organisations.
A platform for the future
As the sponsors of the project, the UK government is to be applauded for instigating an initiative which will not
only address one of the biggest long-term issues facing aerospace but also for kick-starting a different way of
working for the industry. The new resource pool created by FlyZero will be able to access knowledge from across
the sector, giving those who work on the project more capability and collective power than any other industry
community that has been put together before.
By doing things differently the project has created a new model for aerospace collaboration which could be
incredibly powerful and transformative at a time when the industry needs to adapt the most.
