Aerospace company Destinus, based in Europe and Spain since 2021, successfully completed the first flight of a hydrogen-powered drone in Europe in May. Its next milestone, explains Davide Bonetti, CEO of Destinus Spain, which is headquartered in Switzerland and has subsidiaries in Germany, France and the Netherlands, will be the launch of a drone designed to reach supersonic speeds. Flight is expected in 2024 and a mockup of the prototype in production was first displayed on June 19 at the Paris International Aerospace Show. “The Destinus 3 demonstrator will be the first drone in the world to use liquid hydrogen as fuel and break the sound barrier,” Bonetti told EL PAÍS.
The use of hydrogen as a fuel source represents a significant advance in sustainable aviation. It has properties that allow for clean combustion, which minimizes carbon emissions and, in addition, offers three times more energy than conventional fuel (Jet A), making it suitable for long distances and high speeds in aviation. Destinus is developing hydrogen afterburners for prototype drones that “pave the way for a new era of cleaner and more efficient propulsion systems,” says Bonetti.
Destinus has flown its Jungfrau and Eiger models several times, testing the properties of hypersonic aerodynamics and the functionality and efficiency of hydrogen afterburners under real conditions. The Jungfrau demonstrator (Destinus 1) completed a “historic flight” at an airport near Munich (Germany) on May 24, the company says: “We are thrilled with the result.” We have an unmanned aerial vehicle for the first time Aircraft tested using hydrogen combustion. This is the first time in the world that this has happened and marks a milestone in our roadmap.”
The Jungfrau’s new propulsion system consists of “a conventional turbine to which has been added an entirely Destinus-developed hydrogen afterburner that is selectively activated during flight.” , injected into the exhaust stream,” says the aerospace company. “The increased thrust generated by the afterburners allows aircraft to achieve higher rates of climb and provide the power needed to reach supersonic speeds,” he adds.
The next breakthrough in this “revolutionary aerospace technology,” argues Bonetti, will be the commissioning of the world’s first hydrogen-powered supersonic prototype. The Destinus-3, an aircraft 10 meters long and four meters wide and weighing almost two tons, will use hydrogen in a cryogenic state (at 250 degrees below zero) and fly at speeds in excess of Mach 1 , well over 1,200 kilometers per minute hour. “Destinus-3 will have a range of hundreds of kilometers, that’s all I can say,” Bonetti commented on the phone a few days before the official presentation of the prototype last Monday in Paris.
A life-size model showing the engine and a sample of the postcombustor and hydrogen tank will be on display at this prestigious air show. This device will conduct the first subsonic tests in 2024 “to verify that the design and technology meet the requirements for launch and flight operations”. Bonetti emphasizes that it will perform maneuvers in a circle, in an ellipse and in a figure eight to test its behavior at different speeds and altitudes. In a second phase, supersonic speeds are to be achieved.
With the Destinus-3, tests can be performed with an autopilot controlled from the ground via a telemetry system and remote control via antennas and satellites. Destinus has invested more than 50 million euros in the development of the first hypersonic aircraft in Europe. The aim is to create “the world’s fastest system for transporting passengers and goods”, which runs on hydrogen as a fuel and replaces kerosene.
determination
With a workforce of more than 140 people, the company has a technical engineering office at its headquarters in Tres Cantos (Madrid), which is responsible for the design of Destinus-3 at the system, mission, GNC and mission levels. In addition, work is underway to develop a test center for hydrogen-powered engines with unique characteristics in Europe, where various components and engines will be tested.
This company is also involved in a consortium of Spanish companies led by the aerospace company ITP Aero, which has started developing the first hydrogen-powered aircraft engine using exclusively national technology. The forecast assumes that the first tests can be carried out by mid-2025.
“We believe that hydrogen must be the fuel that will revolutionize sustainable aviation. It is up to our generation to take the initiative to enable greener mobility. Two ingredients are needed for this: a modern industrial vision and the support of institutions that allow the testing of new technological solutions and improve the future of conventional aviation,” Bonetti affirms to this newspaper.
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