Less than a month after receiving a permit to fly from the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), hydrogen-electric plane developer ZeroAvia has successfully completed the first flight of its 19-passenger aircraft. It’s maiden flight marks the record for the largest aircraft in the world to be powered by a hydrogen-electric engine, representing a huge moment for clean aviation.
ZeroAvia is a zero-emission aviation company that develops planes that utilize hydrogen-electric propulsion. The company currently operates in the US and UK and previously achieved experimental certificates for prototype aircraft from both the CAA and FAA.
ZeroAvia has been working toward the development of zero-emission commercial plane operations with its 600kW powertrain by 2024, targeting nine to nineteen seat aircraft with a range of 300 miles. That propulsion system will be followed by a two to five mega-watt version, targeting a 700-mile range.
The company already has investments from Alaska Air Group in addition to another $35 million from United Airlines. Last summer, ZeroAvia announced an additional $30 million in funding to help further develop its hydrogen-electric plane technology to get into the air.
In late December, ZeroAvia confirmed that it had finally received the necessary permit in the UK to get its 19-seat Dornier 228 twin-engine aircraft airborne. Today, the company is celebrating the successful journey with the video footage to prove it. Normally, we’d save this for the end of the article, but you need to see it ASAP.
The company shared details of its HyFlyer II project this morning, including the video footage above. The HyFlyer II program is a major R&D project backed by the UK Government, which targets development of the aforementioned 600kW zero-emission plane powertrain.
The twin-engine plane was retrofitted with ZeroAvia’s hydrogen-electric engine on its left wing, which operated alongside a Honeywell TPE-331 stock engine on the right as a failsafe.
The flight took place from the ZeroAvia’s R&D facility at Cotswold Airport in Gloucestershire, UK. Earlier today overseas, the hydrogen-electric plane completed taxi, take-off, a full pattern circuit, and landing; it’s maiden flight lasted 10 minutes and all systems performed as expected. ZeroAvia founder and CEO Val Miftakhov spoke to this momentous event for the future of zero-emissions aviation:
This is a major moment, not just for ZeroAvia, but for the aviation industry as a whole, as it shows that true zero-emission commercial flight is only a few years away. The first flight of our 19-seat aircraft shows just how scalable our technology is and highlights the rapid progress of zero-emission propulsion. This is only the beginning – we are building the future of sustainable, zero climate impact aviation. Our approach is the best solution to accelerate clean aviation at scale. Congratulations to everyone on our team and all of our partners and stakeholders for the collective effort that brought us to this monumental day in history.
Looking ahead, ZeroAvia will work toward its certifiable configuration to be finalized and submitted in 2023. When certified, the company will be able to deliver commercial routes using its technology by 2025. The Dornier 228 seen above will face a series of additional test flights from Kemble, followed by demonstration flights departing from other airports.
Remember, ZeroAvia also already has it 2-5 MW powertrain program underway, which can be used to power 90 passenger hydrogen-electric planes and travel much greater distances if successful. The company believes today’s successful flight demonstrates its tremendous progress and leaves cause for optimism for expedited hydrogen-electric powertrain development going forward.
This is an exciting moment for both aviation and zero-emission mobility. Should we watch the video again?
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Although sales of Porsche’s first EV, the Taycan, fell nearly 50% in 2024, things could be looking up for the sports car maker. After its “launch literally electrified us,” the electric Porsche Macan may spark a comeback this year.
Why did Porsche’s EV sales drop in 2024?
Porsche delivered over 310,700 vehicles globally last year, or about 9,500 less than in 2023. Sales in China led the downfall, plunging 28% from the prior year amid a wave of low-cost domestic EVs entering the market.
In total, Porsche delivered 20,836 Taycan EVs to customers last year, down 49% from 2023. The lower total comes after launching the upgraded 2025 Taycan last year. Porsche also said, “The ramp-up of electric mobility is generally proceeding more slowly than planned” as part of the reason.
In its largest sales market, North America, Porsche delivered over 86,500 vehicles in 2024. Although that’s up a mere 1% from 2023, Porsche’s EV sales also took a hit.
Porsche sold 4,747 Taycan models in the US last year, 37% fewer than in 2023. The 2025 model began arriving at US dealerships last Summer, which helped push sales up nearly 75% in the fourth quarter to 2,358.
Meanwhile, Porsche’s second EV, the electric Macan, could have an even bigger impact. After delivering the first models at the end of September, Porsche delivered 18,278 electric Macans by the end of 2024.’
“This launch literally electrified us. I am therefore particularly pleased that more than 18,000 examples of the all-electric variant have already been delivered,” Porsche AG board member for sales and marketing, Detlev von Platen, said.
Porsche sold 2,771 electric Macan SUVs in the US last year. On a call with reporters (via Automotive News), the company’s North American CEO, Timo Resch, said, “A lot of the consumers that come into the Macan Electric are [new to the] brand.”
Electrek’s Take
I’m not here to say the electric Macan will be Porsche’s savior, but the strong sales start is promising. Porsche has already backtracked on plans for 80% of deliveries to be electric by 2030.
According to recent reports, the electric Cayenne, due out in 2026, could be delayed depending on market demand. The upcoming 718 Cayman and Boxster EVs could also face delays as Porsche plans to keep gas and hybrid models alive longer than expected.
Looking ahead, Porsche also plans to introduce an ultra-luxury electric SUV to sit above the Cayenne, codenamed “K1” internally. It’s expected to compete with Range Rover and Ferrari’s first electric SUVs.
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Elon Musk complains that Tesla is not getting subsidies for its electric truck chargers while calling for the end of electric vehicle subsidies in the US.
However, it wasn’t included in any round of funding, including the latest one announced this week, which should be the latest now that Trump is getting into office and campaigned on ending electric vehicle subsidies.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk contributed more than $240 million to get Trump elected and supported his goal of removing subsidies for electric vehicles.
That’s why it’s surprising to see Musk comment on the news in disappointment. He wrote on X: “Hear we go again (sigh)”.
While this specific project wasn’t funded, 49 other projects shared over $600 million in funding that will deploy more than 11,500 EV charging ports across 27 states, four federally recognized tribes, and the District of Columbia.
Also, while Tesla didn’t get any funding in this round, Tesla has received millions in funding for its charging stations in the previous round.
Electrek’s Take
I think that’s fair. If you are actively lobbying for the end of EV subsidies in the US, a market that is far behind the rest of the world in EV adoption, why should the administration that is investing in correcting that give you the subsidies you are trying to end?
It makes no sense. That’s why I also support California in signaling that if the Federal government removes its EV subsidies, it will replace them at the state level, but Tesla will be left out.
It’s especially fair considering Elon has made it clear that the reason he wants to kill EV subsidies, which Tesla was the biggest beneficiary of, is that he believes it will put more pressure on the competition than Tesla and potentially kill them while only Tesla will remain.
He basically wants to pull the ladder that Tesla used to get where it is now to prevent others from using it.
“Subsidies for me, not for thee” – Elon’s new motto.
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The US electric bike industry has already seen a regulation-heavy start to 2025. Now, New York Governor Kathy Hochul’s potential new restrictions on fast and exceedingly heavy electric bikes could add to the proposed and enacted legislation we’ve seen lately.
Hochul proposed in her State of the State address yesterday that Class 3 electric bikes weighing over 100 lb (45 kg) be excluded from existing electric bicycle regulations and instead be treated more like mopeds.
That would mean imposing motor vehicle regulations resulting in licensing and registration requirements, as well as disallowing their use in bike lanes.
The governor explained that this new regulation would ideally help increase the safety of bike lanes, according to Streetsblog NYC.
As a reminder, Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes can reach a top speed of 20 mph (32 km/h) on motor power, with Class 2 e-bikes including a throttle that allows motor use without requiring the pedals to be used. In most states, Class 3 e-bikes can reach higher speeds of up to 28 mph (45 km/h) with pedal assist but not throttle. However, New York State has stricter Class 3 limits that provide for speeds up to just 25 mph (40 km/h).
The proposed new regulations would only target Class 3 e-bikes that exceed the suggested weight limit of 100 lb (45 kg).
Most electric bikes weigh well under 100 lb (45 kg). Common e-bikes seen regularly on US streets and bike lanes weigh between 50-75 lb (23 to 34 kg). However, there are some e-bike models available on the market that can reach or exceed 100 lb (45 kg). We’ve tested a few of them.
Such heavy electric bikes are usually visually similar to mopeds and light electric motorcycles, often featuring large tires, heavy motors, dual suspension, chunky frames, and other components that add significant weight. However, many heavy electric bicycles are limited to 20 mph (32 km/h), and could exceed the arbitrary 100 lb (45 kg) proposed limit while still not falling under this proposed regulation due to their Class 2 designation.
Electrek’s Take
At face value, there’s some logic to this. A 100 lb electric bike has a lot more rolling mass than a 50 lb electric bike, and you can guess which one I’d rather get hit by. Though at the same time, when the rider nearly always weighs more than the vehicle, the weight of the e-bike certainly has a lower relevance to its safety. With a 200 lb (91 kg) rider on both bikes, we’re only talking about a relatively small 20% difference in mass.
And it’s a bit telling that there wasn’t much discussion in the State of the State address about any other road safety issues, certainly not about the several thousand-pound cars that actually kill many New Yorkers every year.
I’m not saying I don’t support reasonable regulations to ensure the safety of everyone, in the bike lanes and outside of them. But let’s get real here. The percentage of electric bikes that are 100+ lb is tiny, likely under 1-2% of all e-bikes on the road. And that’s a tiny slice of an entire pie that is itself a tiny slice of the injury-causing-vehicle pie. So I’m not saying there isn’t any good regulation opportunity out there for e-bikes. But this is all fluff on top of fluff if you think it’s actually about making a meaningful impact on road safety. If they really cared about better protecting cyclists, governments would enforce existing laws to prevent cars from killing them so frequently.
These types of clumsy, heavy-handed regulations are just that – quick and dirty attempts to appear to be working towards a solution, when in fact they are largely meaningless in their ultimate impact on protecting lives.
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