Engines
Austrian Partners Start Work on Hydrogen Piston Engine
A partnership between Diamond Aircraft and the Austrian government is developing options to power general aviation aircraft with liquid hydrogen.
A team from Austro Engine and Bosch General Aviation Technology has announced plans for a hydrogen-powered piston aircraft.
A team from Austro Engine and Bosch General Aviation Technology has started work on a hydrogen-powered piston aircraft. (Image: Diamond Aircraft)

Austro Engine, a joint venture between Diamond Aircraft Industries and the Austrian Research Promotion Agency, this week launched a program to develop a hydrogen-powered piston engine for general aviation aircraft. The agency, which is known by its German acronym FFG, is jointly owned by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Mobility, Innovation, and Technology; the Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs; and the Vienna University of Technology.

The partners, who also include Bosch General Aviation Technology, said they intend to develop a bivalent engine that could run on either sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) or liquid hydrogen. The research phase of the project is scheduled to be completed in 2024.