12 April 2022
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Royal Schiphol Group, Airbus, Royal NLR and TU Delft are entering into a close co-operation to develop the technology needed for climate-neutral flights in 2050. To mark the start of the Flying Vision joint initiative, the five parties signed a partnership agreement on Monday evening, 11 April.
07 April 2022
On 30 March 2022, the maiden flight of a scaled version of a single-aisle aircraft, known as the Scaled Flight Demonstrator (SFD), took place. Under the Clean Sky 2 Joint Undertaking, co-funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme and private industry, stakeholders will use the SFD to test and mature disruptive technologies that will enable significant reductions in energy consumption. The flight took place in Deelen (NL) and lasted 9 minutes, achieving a height of 400 metres (1,400 feet).
05 April 2022
Electric aircraft offer many advantages, but will they ever be able to compete on cost? As the world slowly recovers from COVID-19, the aviation sector is also expected to regain its former strength. Nevertheless, the pandemic has created a new focus on sustainability, and changes are expected in the post-COVID aviation fleet, such as fewer old-generation aircraft. The total aviation CO2 emissions calculated for each kilometre a passenger travels are not expected to change significantly soon, though, and total CO2 emissions may easily return to their 2019 levels.
02 March 2022
Electrification of small-scale short-haul flights in the Netherlands is achievable. The first electrically powered flights, for nine passengers, could be certified and available on the short-haul market by 2026. That would make it possible to take an important step towards making aviation more sustainable. That is the result of a study carried out by NACO/Royal HaskoningDHV with Royal NLR on instructions from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. The study has recently been present to the Dutch parliament.
16 February 2022
The Member of the European Parliament Caroline Nagtegaal talked to Royal NLR about the challenges in aviation. The climate challenge does not stop at national borders. It is a complex issue that concerns the whole of Europe. A lot needs to be done outside the aviation sector too to make the continent climate-neutral by 2050.
08 February 2022
This is the Week of the Circular Economy in the Netherlands. During last year’s edition, NLR organised a webinar and, together with its partners, NLR has been up to a lot since then. Connections were made with like-minded organisations and NLR incorporated the concept of circular aviation in its new Climate-Neutral Aviation programme. However, many more circular practices still need to be included.
