Speaking at the Aerospace Test & Development Show 2025 in Toulouse this week, Neji Khairi, hydrogen propulsion program manager from Flying Whales outlined the French-Canadian company’s plans to fuel its airships using hydrogen.
Founded in 2017, Flying Whales is developing the LCA60T heavy airship as a cargo airship for applications in remote areas. The aircraft combines lighter-than-air technology with modern propulsion and control systems and aims to be a more sustainable air logistics platform than existing methods.
The LCA60T is 200m long and 50m tall and can carry 60 tons of cargo while hovering, supported by 10 unpressurized helium cells. It will initially be powered by a 4MW hybrid electric propulsion system.
Speaking at the event, Khairi highlighted the work of Flying Whales’ Flying Well Innovation Department, which is leading the development of hydrogen propulsion systems in the company. According to Khairi the LCA60T’s hybrid-electric propulsion system will reduce the environmental impact of the aircraft to create a sustainable and efficient heavy lift airship.
When asked about the use of hydrogen to fuel the airships, Khairi said, “We started working on hydrogen around five years ago. We are planning to start using it by 2030, which is when our more serious activities are scheduled.”
The company says the main benefit of hydrogen is that the airships already have water onboard, which is used to maintain the equilibrium of the machine.
Neji said the concept of using heavy-lift cargo airships comes from “a need to load up and to have the ability to load a large amount of cargo and change goods without having to land”.
Considering the vast forested areas in countries such as France, Flying Whales argues its airships could help reduce the nation’s economic deficit caused by heavy reliance on imported wood by enabling sustainable access to wood resources.
The Aerospace Test & Development Show 2025 ran from 30 September to 1 October at the MEETT Toulouse Exhibition & Convention Centre, France. For more information and to enquire about next year’s show go to https://www.aerotestdevelopmentshow.com/
