Universal Hydrogen, an innovative startup and leader in hydrogen-powered aircraft, has declared bankruptcy after exhausting $100 million of investor capital. The company was unable to raise additional capital, and has shut down operations. The was a surprise to many in the industry, as the company had reached several key milestones and was looking forward to future flight tests of its system by 2026.
The company successfully ran a megawatt-class fuel cell powertrain using a proprietary liquid hydrogen fuel module. This was the largest fuel cell ever to run on liquid hydrogen, and simulated a 1 hour 40 minute regional aircraft flight profile. Two such modules could power an ATR-72 size regional aircraft for a 500 nautical mile flight.
