In an attempt to cut emissions from air travel, Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) has laid plans for an environmentally friendly airship from Belfast to Liverpool.
Bedford-based aviation company Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) has put forward a proposal for an eco-friendly airship-type craft to take passengers from Belfast to Liverpool.
It is hoped the craft will work as an environmentally friendly alternative to aeroplanes for short-haul routes.
A move in the right direction – sustainable travel
HAV hope that short-haul flights on the eco-friendly airship from Belfast to Liverpool could begin as soon as 2025.
Other proposed routes for the commercial airship include flights to popular holiday destinations, including Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca in four-and-a-half hours.
HAV said that taking into account time spent getting to-and-from the airport, journeys on the eco-friendly airship would take roughly the same time as currently offered flights.
An exciting innovation – a new mode of air travel
The eco-friendly airship will be called the Airlander 10 and will carry up to 100 passengers.
HAV have announced they hope to produce 12 airship-type crafts by 2025 to cater for various routes. They have also stated that journeys would cost roughly in the range of current flight prices.
Chief executive of HAV Tom Grundy said travel on the Airlander 10 will not be a luxury service. Rather, he hopes it will be “a practical solution to challenges posed by the climate crisis”.
The company estimates that this eco-friendly alternative to air travel would emit 90% less CO2 than current aeroplanes. The carbon footprint of each passenger on the Airlander 10 is expected to be around 4.5 kg. This is a huge improvement when compared with about 53 kg emitted via jet plane.
Covid changed the conversation – looking to the future
Speaking to BBC News NI on the proposal for an eco-friendly airship from Belfast to Liverpool, Mr Grundy said the COVID-19 pandemic had shifted conversations in the aerospace industry.
He said, “It’s not going to be affordable or acceptable for very much longer to have these really fast aeroplanes given the convenience of flying really, really short distances.
“That discussion has gone from being quite hard to being quite easy.”
Founded in 2007, HAV work with the ethos of “rethinking the skies”. Over the past 14 years, they have spent about £140m developing new technology and trying to find a midpoint between high-speed flights and slower overland transportation.
Mr Grundy explained that while the Airlander 10 will be similar to an airship. However, the technology used will be fundamentally different.
One of the biggest differences is that the eco-friendly airship-type craft will be heavy enough to land. Thus, making it a much more practical option.
