FutureFlight
Alaska Airlines Donates Dash 8 Aircraft for ZeroAvia's Hydrogen Propulsion Project
The former Horizon Air regional airliner will be fitted with ZeroAvia's ZA2000 powertrain, which combines fuel cells with electric motors to run on liquid hydrogen.
Alaska Airlines donated a Dash 8 Q400 regional airliner to be converted to hydrogen propulsion by ZeroAvia.
Alaska Airlines donated a Dash 8 Q400 regional airliner to be converted to hydrogen propulsion by ZeroAvia. (Image: ZeroAvia)

Alaska Airlines this week donated a Dash 8 Q400 twin turboprop aircraft to ZeroAvia to support the company’s work to convert regional airliners to hydrogen propulsion. The aircraft handed over at a May 1 event at ZeroAvia’s research and development facility at Paine Field in Washington state will be fitted with the company’s ZA2000 fuel-cell-based propulsion system in preparation for eventual flight testing.

ZeroAvia plans to retrofit the aircraft with a prototype of the ZA2000 system to power the propeller on the left side of the aircraft, with the right side retaining its Pratt & Whitney PW150A engine. The company says it expects to be ready to start flight testing the 78-seat aircraft in 2024.

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