What Future ZeroAvia Has Without Val Miftakhov?

No one is irreplaceable, the word has. But if the founding CEO of a company steps down, who has also been the driver behind the project for almost ten years, it raises the question: how will that company deal with that? This is the situation ZeroAvia finds itself in, now that CEO Val Miftakhov left earlier this week. Miftakhov will stay on as a member of the Board, but has effectively left the company to pursue options elsewhere. Chairman of the Board, Christine Ourmieres-Widener, will take over as CEO, having already run ZeroAvia on a day-to-day level for the past few months. In a media statement, Miftakhov says: "Building ZeroAvia from an idea into a company at the forefront of sustainable aviation has been the privilege of a lifetime. I am incredibly proud of what this team has accomplished, and I remain fully committed to ZeroAvia's success. I look forward to continuing to contribute as a member of the Board as the company enters its next chapter." Trouble Behind the praising words, there is no denying that ZeroAvia is in trouble. When Miftakhov founded ZeroAvia in 2017, his ambition was to develop a hydrogen-electric fuel-cell and electromotor for a range of aircraft. The ZA600 with a power output of 600kW was developed first and test-flown multiple times in the UK in 2023 on a Dornier Do-228 testbed. The powertrain with multiple 200kW fuel cell modules was supposed to be certified in 2024 for initial application on a Cessna Caravan, but this slipped to 2025. It didn't happen. At the same time, ZeroAvia pumped time and resources into developing the more powerful but also more complex ZA2000 powertrain. With an output between 2 and 5 mW, this system would be powerful enough to propel a 40 to 80-seat regional aircraft. ZeroAvia found potential applications on the De Havilland Canada Dash 8, with Alaska Airlines as an early customer until the airline retired all its turboprops. United Airlines and American Airlines were interested in the project for re-engining their Bombardier/Mitsubishi CRJ fleets, a reason that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Regional Jet (MHIRJ) got involved. Things looked promising when ZeroAvia attracted fresh funding in September 2023 from Barclays, Saudi investor NEOM, and even Airbus. The European airframer has been developing its own fuel-cell powertrain for the ZEROe project, but was keen to get the experience and knowledge of ZeroAvia on board. [caption id="attachment_70686" align="aligncenter" width="706"] ZeroAvia first flight 2 1200x800[/caption] Losing momentum It was in 2024 that ZeroAvia started to lose momentum. Actually, the entire hydrogen ecosystem started to lose momentum. Predictions that the first hydrogen-powered aircraft would be available by the early 2030s shifted to the right. A major indication was when US-startup Universal Hydrogen ran out of funding in June 2024, unable to get its removable hydrogen-tank system beyond the early test stages. In early 2025, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury had to admit that the hydrogen ecosystem was not progressing as planned, forcing Airbus to push back ZEROe from the mid-30s to the mid-40s. This negative wave also hit ZeroAvia. In a major review, the company slashed half of its 300 workforce last year, which affected both its Propulsion Centre of Excellence in Everett and its two UK facilities. Certification of the ZA600 was pushed out until 2027, before ZeroAvia said this January that it only wanted to certify the fuel cell system rather than the complete powertrain. Development of the ZA2000 would also be temporised by one to two years, conditional on securing adequate funding. Last December, ZeroAvia completed a round of financing thanks to the support of Barclays Climate Ventures, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the Ecosystem Integrity Fund, Horizons Ventures, Summa Equity, AP Ventures, the National Wealth Fund, and Scottish National Investment Bank. ZeroAvia didn’t disclose the value of the investments. Special conditions In April, Miftakhov declared himself satisfied that the FAA had announced the special conditions under which the ZA600 electric motor would have to be certified. “Having special conditions for our electric propulsion system published by the FAA is an enormous achievement that underscores the aerospace maturity of our organisation and illuminates our path forward towards type certification. It’s rapid progress from both industry and regulators that bodes well for progressing the electric age of flight”, Miftakhov said in a media statement. Despite pre-orders for 3.000 SuperStack Flex powertrains from airline operators, OEMs, and defence companies, and Miftakhov’s optimism about the momentum of zero-emission flying, his own momentum within ZeroAvia has stalled. That Miftakhov has been out of the day-to-day running of the company for some months is an indication that his position has been under pressure for some time. In the statement, ZeroAvia says that it is committed to continuing the project: “ZeroAvia remains focused on its mission to decarbonise aviation through hydrogen-electric propulsion technology. The company's programmes, partnerships and development milestones continue to progress, and the Board is committed to ensuring a seamless leadership transition.” Yet, Val Miftakhov’s departure will be deeply felt within the company.

US Flight Planner	Airbus vs Boeing
US Airline Schedule Performance	Daily Production & Deliveries

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Related News

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Related News

Why are Airbus and Boeing investing millions in SAF?

Hydrogen Operations – Wizz Air and Airbus sign MoU