Airbus and MTU Aero Engines have announced plans for a joint venture to develop a fully electric hydrogen fuel cell engine. The two companies say they intend to set it up and bring the engine to market. The deal is non-binding, still needs regulatory approvals and is expected to start operations in 2027.
In 2025, Airbus revised its hydrogen aircraft roadmap and narrowed its focus to fuel cells. According to Airbus, the partnership with MTU followed that decision. The Airbus press release, dated 7 July 2026, also leaves some big questions open.
From Memorandum to Joint Venture in Just Over a Year
Airbus and MTU signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the Paris Air Show on 18 June 2025. According to the release at the time, it set out a three-step roadmap. The first step was to mature the technology building blocks through joint research, such as the Clean Aviation programme. The second was to align the two companies’ research roadmaps on hydrogen. Only then would they “consider a third step” towards a fuel cell engine for a hydrogen-powered aircraft.
MTU’s Dr. Stefan Weber described the joint efforts as the first step in paving the way for “a potential product development in the future.”
Just over a year later, the plan is more concrete. The companies now intend to set up a joint venture dedicated to developing and commercialising the engine. Bruno Fichefeux, Head of Future Programmes at Airbus, called it “the next logical step” in the companies’ shared vision of a hydrogen-based propulsion concept.
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Why Airbus Narrowed Its Hydrogen Plans to Fuel Cells
Airbus launched its ZEROe project in 2020 to test two routes for hydrogen flight: burning the hydrogen and using it in fuel cells. In March 2025, it announced that it was focusing on a fully electric fuel cell system. Airbus says prototype and powertrain tests supported the viability of this technology. So did research into related technology such as cryogenics.
At its 2025 summit, Airbus showed a notional concept: an aircraft with four electric propulsion engines of 2 megawatts each. Each engine would be driven by a fuel cell system, and the four systems would draw hydrogen from two liquid hydrogen tanks. Notional means a working idea, not a product.
The shift came with a delay. In February 2025, Airbus said its hydrogen aircraft is expected to arrive later than 2035, without giving a new date. Fichefeux later said Airbus had “adjusted our roadmap,” but called its dedication to hydrogen-powered flight “unwavering.”
How the Engine Would Work
A hydrogen fuel cell makes electricity by letting hydrogen react with oxygen. The only byproduct is water vapour. Airbus and MTU say this would eliminate inflight emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). In Airbus’s concept, that electricity drives the engines.
Airbus adds a condition on its own website. It says the process is “almost carbon-neutral as long as the hydrogen is made using renewable energy.” The July 2026 release does not repeat that caveat.
Test Cells, Stacks and a Liquid Hydrogen System
Both partners have hardware to show. The release says MTU has nailed down the design of its Flying Fuel Cell and started stack manufacturing for the demonstrator. The eMoSys electric motor was successfully tested for the first time, and the first test cell has gone into operation in Munich.
In September 2024, MTU reported multi-week tests of a liquid hydrogen fuel system. The hydrogen is stored as a liquid at about −250 °C, MTU explains, and must be heated into gas before it reaches the fuel cell.
Airbus has its own results. It demonstrated a 1.2-megawatt hydrogen propulsion system in 2023. In 2024, it completed end-to-end tests of a system that combined fuel cell stacks, electric motors, gearboxes, inverters and heat exchangers. Its March 2025 plan puts integrated ground testing in Munich in 2027.
MTU also leads HEROPS, a Clean Aviation project launched in early 2024. It aims to develop technologies for a hydrogen-powered electric powertrain based on the Flying Fuel Cell.
The Gaps: Hydrogen Supply, Cost and Timing
The July 2026 release gives no budget, no technical specifications and no date for an aircraft that would use the engine. It also says nothing about where the hydrogen would come from.
That last gap matters. When Airbus pushed back its programme, it said progress on key enablers was “slower than anticipated.” It named the large-scale availability of hydrogen from renewable sources in particular. It also called the wider hydrogen ecosystem a substantial challenge. That includes infrastructure, production, distribution and regulation. The new release names related enablers: a hydrogen aviation economy and the rules that go with it. Airbus says its Hydrogen Hubs at Airports programme counts more than 220 airports as partners.
The supply side can be hard to get right. An earlier EcoTechNews report looked at the hydrogen ferry MF Hydra. Its lifecycle emissions came out higher than a diesel ferry’s once making, liquefying and trucking the hydrogen were counted. Research on production continues elsewhere, for example in a Chinese Academy of Sciences system that makes hydrogen and fresh water at the same time.
Approvals, Social Processes and a 2027 Start
The agreement is non-binding. It is subject to standard regulatory approvals. It also depends on the completion of social processes at European and national levels. The release does not explain what those social processes involve.
Two things are worth watching. One is whether the joint venture starts operations in 2027 as expected. The other is whether Airbus and MTU later give a date for an aircraft that uses the engine.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Airbus and MTU Venture
What is the Airbus and MTU joint venture?
Airbus and MTU Aero Engines intend to set up a joint venture. It would develop and bring to market a fully electric hydrogen fuel cell engine for aviation.
When will the joint venture start?
The release says the new joint venture is expected to start operations in 2027.
Is the agreement final?
The release calls it a non-binding agreement. It is subject to standard regulatory approvals. It also depends on the completion of social processes at European and national levels.
What does a hydrogen fuel cell engine emit?
A hydrogen fuel cell makes electricity by letting hydrogen react with oxygen. Its only byproduct is water vapour. Airbus and MTU say this would eliminate inflight emissions of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides. The release does not say how the hydrogen would be produced.
What has MTU already built or tested?
According to the release, MTU has nailed down the design of its Flying Fuel Cell and started stack manufacturing for the demonstrator. It has also successfully tested the eMoSys electric motor for the first time. The first test cell is in operation in Munich.
When will an aircraft with this engine fly?
The release gives no date for an aircraft. It only says the joint venture is expected to start operations in 2027.
Source: Airbus press release, 7 July 2026. More on clean transport: Green Mobility news.
Acknowledgment of AI
Content developed using AI technology, reviewed to ensure clarity, coherence, and accuracy before publication
