Momentum grows at H55
If the secret to success is generating momentum, then 2024 is turning out to be a strong year for H55.
The pioneer in electric aviation technologies, which is headquartered in Switzerland, has made a number of announcements concerning new overseas operations, the market entry of the B23 Energic and the completion of several important product certification milestones.
And for H55 co-founder and executive chairman André Borschberg, each of these announcements represent important achievements for the company as it seeks to overcome the challenges and develop the opportunities prevalent in today’s electric aviation sector.
The most recent announcement made in May concerned the intention of the government of Québec to invest in equity in H55. Led by Investissement Québec, a driver of economic development in Quebec, this investment, supports H55’s production ramp-up and research and development activities as it brings certified electric propulsion solutions to North America.
It now means that H55 Canada, which is located in the Greater Montreal region in Longueuil, will serve as the primary hub for H55’s North American manufacturing operations and will be equipped with a state-of-the-art facility, with initial battery pack production set to commence in late 2024. H55 will also continue to collaborate on product development and engineering customisation with key customers, including Pratt & Whitney Canada, CAE and Harbour Air.
Borschberg says the new facility allows the company to provide a solution to an immediate problem as well as growing North American operations.
He adds: “The battery packs must be assembled locally because they are something that are not easy to transport. But just as importantly, being close to the customer not only helps integration first, but then later on helps with all the maintenance and service that will be provided while we are also going to do engineering work there.”
Nor is that the only partnership that has begun bearing fruit in 2024. In April, H55 hit the headlines with the news that it and BRM Aero, a prominent manufacturer of 2-seater training aircraft, were opening the order book on its B23 Energic aircraft.
And this is significant, as the B23 Energic will be the first certified, clean, and efficient fully electric aircraft in the CS-23 general aviation category, with the first deliveries to a selected group of launch customers scheduled early next year.
This process is running concurrently with the finalisation of H55’s certification process with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for its electric propulsion system (EPS) which is on track for completion by early next year.
Borschberg says: “We are at the final steps of certifying our propulsion system which consists of both the motor and battery. Having the certification authorities agreeing to a product type certificate which brings together the propulsion and energy systems is a first.
Normally the authorities tend to consider the batteries as part of the aircraft system, but we could demonstrate that the battery and motor are one system and therefore can be certified together.”
H55 continues to put into place strategic relationships with both suppliers and customers. Borschberg is always interested in working with other companies looking to integrate H55 technology into their own products, he has three criteria that must be met before entering into a commercial relationship.
“First of all we consider how realistic the project is,” Borschberg says. “Some programs are betting on the future development of technology and while they can be very ambitious it’s potentially very risky for us.
“Secondly I need to know how experienced the team is. You can have dreamers but they need to have a solid vision for success as you have to make it happen in aviation with certification and only an experienced team can do this.
“Finally there needs to be access to finance because any new type of airplane is very expensive and needs a huge investment.”
While H55 has seen success this year through strong partnerships, it is also making critical progress in its own product certification with the EU Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). In April, the company’s compliance check list for its electric propulsion motor and motor controller was approved by EASA This comes after the agency had already accepted its compliance check list for its battery packs and energy management systems.
H55 is currently finalizing all the tests of its battery packs to satisfy, by the end of this year, all EASA certification requirements. The battery packs will be ready to be integrated in any CS-23 level 1 and 2 aircraft from the beginning of 2025.
The certifications are tailored for general aviation and commuter applications with the first set of systems being integrated into certified flight trainers. In parallel to EASA certification, H55 is pursuing Federal Aviation Agency and Transport Canada regulatory approval.
Borschberg says: “This agreement represents a significant step forward on our company’s development, as well as bringing electric aviation to the market and reducing the aviation industry’s environmental footprint.
“I am especially excited about this development as we are closer to seeing the first set of certified electric airplanes soon taking to the skies.”
And while getting this far in the certification process might have been a lengthy process, Borschberg accepts that is it all part of the challenge of bringing electric aviation to the skies.
“There needs to be a process of education. Because experience in the sector is limited, the authorities are prudent, and their requirements are important; there are always going to be these hurdles as it is an emerging technology.”
He adds one other challenge concerns energy density of the battery packs as aircraft manufacturers need to be realistic about the current limits of the technology.
“We have to balance the ambition with what the technology can achieve,” Borschberg says.
However, he argues that with the ongoing need to move to clean aviation and the pressure that is producing, there are plenty of opportunities in the sector.
Borschberg says: “The opportunity is provided by the electric technology itself as the goal is to provide an aircraft which is more economical for the user than one using a combustion engine.
“Electric propulsion will allow us to come up with news designs for aircraft and in the market you can already see the emergence of eVTOLs and STOLs.
“Electric propulsion has a lot of advantages thanks to its efficiency and low maintenance which means longer operating hours which makes it pretty economical.
“You also have multi-engine solutions as maintenance is so low – you can have one motor or 10 motors and it doesn’t make a big difference and that’s the reason you see different configurations now emerging which we like as we see a big potential for the technology in the long term.”
And Borschberg says he and all the H55 staff are committed in the long term to the future of electric aviation, which is just as well as they are certainly generating the momentum required to get there.
