Dutch NLR and Rotterdam The Hague Airport Complete HYDRA-II Drone Liquid Hydrogen Test Flight

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (Royal NLR) and Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTHA) have announced the successful flight demonstration of a liquid hydrogen-powered aircraft. During the demonstration, NLR's HYDRA-II drone completed its flight relying solely on liquid hydrogen, showcasing the full industry chain capability from supply and storage to application.

In 2025, the HYDRA-II drone became the first aircraft in the Netherlands to successfully fly on liquid hydrogen. Previous demonstrations primarily validated the drone technology itself, while this demonstration focused on examining the conditions required for the safe and practical use of liquid hydrogen in an operational airport environment.

The aviation industry is actively exploring various emission reduction solutions to lower carbon dioxide emissions. In addition to sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and electric flight, hydrogen energy (including liquid hydrogen) is regarded as one of the long-term solutions.

This demonstration tested the complete chain: from the delivery and storage of liquid hydrogen at the airport to its practical application on the aircraft. The tests aimed to understand how these processes can be safely, efficiently, and orderly organized in real-world operations, and to identify knowledge gaps that still need to be addressed for future applications.

The demonstration is part of the European innovation project TULIPS under the Clean Aviation framework and was conducted at Rotterdam The Hague Airport. The airport has its own liquid hydrogen storage facility, an element that is crucial for the future operation of hydrogen-powered flight.

This is a critical period for innovation and accumulating practical experience with hydrogen energy. With its existing storage facilities and supporting operational processes, the airport can support research and testing applications requiring liquid hydrogen in the future. Such facilities and operational procedures are not yet common at airports, and the related infrastructure and hands-on operational experience hold significant value for the further development of hydrogen in aviation.