Liquid Hydrogen Refueling Enables Australasia’s First H2-Electric Flight

(CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND) Fabrum, AMSL Aero, and Stralis Aircraft have completed the first liquid-hydrogen refueling of aviation tanks at Christchurch International Airport, a milestone that puts hydrogen-electric flights within closer reach for Australasia. The joint operation demonstrated, for the first time at an international airport in the region, how the full hydrogen aviation fuel chain can function end to end: producing, storing, and dispensing liquid hydrogen into composite tanks designed for aircraft use at Christchurch Airport’s renewable energy precinct.

The refueling took place at Fabrum’s dedicated liquid-hydrogen test facility on the airport grounds, where the company’s hydrogen liquefier produced fuel on site before it was transferred to aviation-grade composite tanks. The location matters because it proves the process can be done in a real airport environment rather than a lab, showing that liquid-hydrogen refueling infrastructure can be integrated alongside conventional aviation operations. Hydrogen for aviation must be kept at cryogenic temperatures and handled in purpose-built systems; demonstrating that chain on an airport apron is a crucial step toward routine use.

Christopher Boyle, managing director of Fabrum, said the demonstration was designed to show the whole system working together rather than a one-off technical test.

“By bringing all the elements together for the first time on site at an international airport – producing, storing, and dispensing liquid hydrogen into composite aviation tanks as a fuel – we’re proving that liquid-hydrogen technologies for aircraft are now available and that hydrogen-electric flight will soon be a reality in Australasia,” he said.
The test fed directly into aircraft programs that aim to fly on liquid hydrogen stored in these composite tanks, a configuration intended to support longer-range zero-emission regional aviation.

Two aircraft initiatives stand to benefit immediately. AMSL Aero is preparing its Vertiia aircraft, an eVTOL designed from the start to be powered by hydrogen. The company is targeting a 1,000 km range, a 500kg payload, and a 300 km/h cruising speed, pairing vertical take-off capability with the energy density of liquid hydrogen for longer trips than battery-only designs can manage. Stralis Aircraft is developing hydrogen-electric propulsion for fixed-wing platforms, beginning with a Beechcraft Bonanza A36-HE technology demonstrator and planning to scale up to a 15-passenger Beech 1900D-HE. For both programs, building confidence in safe, reliable liquid-hydrogen refueling at an airport is a gated step toward flight testing.

Dr Adriano Di Pietro, AMSL Aero’s chief executive, said the Christchurch Airport run proved out the practical sequence the company needs before flying its own tanks.

“Today, with Fabrum, we have demonstrated the key steps in that process: from producing liquid hydrogen, to filling our ground transport container, then filling the tanks that we will install to our aircraft before our first liquid hydrogen flights next year,” he said.
The focus on ground transport containers and aircraft-installed tanks highlights the logistics chain that future operators will have to master to support regular hydrogen-electric flights at regional airports.

Stralis Aircraft, which is progressing its own technology demonstrator, called the fuel transfer a validation of the equipment that will sit at the heart of its early flight program.

“We’re excited to see Fabrum’s hydrogen fuel dispensing systems for these onboard tanks proven out in testing. This is a vital step toward our first liquid hydrogen test flights,” said Bob Criner, CEO of Stralis Aircraft.
The company’s near-term plan is to fly in Southeast Queensland as a bridge to commercial service, using green hydrogen produced from water and renewable electricity to avoid fossil-fuel emissions throughout the fuel life cycle.

Stralis aims to conduct Australia’s first hydrogen-electric flight in late 2025, using its Bonanza A36-HE platform as a stepping stone to a larger aircraft capable of carrying paying passengers. The company and its partners are then targeting Australia’s first commercial emission-free hydrogen-powered route between Brisbane Airport and Gladstone Airport in 2027, using a 15-seat Stralis B1900D-HE operated by Skytrans Airlines. The timeline is supported by the Hydrogen Flight Alliance, a consortium of aviation and green hydrogen industry players formed in June 2023, which is coordinating industry resources around the move from demonstrations to scheduled services.

Behind the scenes, basic hardware is also moving into place to make airport liquid-hydrogen refueling practical. AMSL Aero and Stralis Aircraft, working with BOC Australia, registered Australia’s first family of liquid hydrogen tanks—Dewar vessels—with a 30 kg capacity, the first of that size to arrive in the country. Stuart Johnstone, CTO and co-founder of Stralis Aircraft, called it a building block for flight tests and the supply chain that will follow.

“This is a key step forward for hydrogen-electric aircraft in Australia, enabling liquid hydrogen refuelling for ground and flying demonstrator aircraft, and supporting development of a liquid hydrogen supply chain in Australia for future commercial flights,” he said.

Fuel-cell propulsion is central to both firms’ strategies. Stralis says its fuel-cell systems are lighter than conventional alternatives, a weight advantage that can translate into range. The company says aircraft using its hydrogen-electric systems could fly up to ten times further than battery-electric equivalents, while also operating at lower costs than planes running on fossil fuels. Another appeal is the emissions profile: the only byproduct from the fuel cell is water vapor, and the technology could cut aviation emissions by 50%, according to the company. That promise is one reason liquid-hydrogen refueling at Christchurch Airport has drawn attention across the region.

The Christchurch demonstration also matters because it occurred at an international airport with an established renewable energy precinct, rather than a remote test site. Installing a hydrogen liquefier and proving out production, storage, and dispensing onsite shows how airports can host their own supply of cryogenic fuel. That model could be especially relevant for regional airports seeking to decarbonize short-haul routes, where on-demand liquefaction and small-scale liquid-hydrogen handling might align with lower daily fuel volumes and existing airfield safety standards overseen by national regulators such as the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand.

For AMSL Aero, the ability to fill ground transport containers and then aircraft tanks is a direct rehearsal for the procedures it plans to follow as Vertiia moves toward hydrogen test flights. The company’s message is that an eVTOL built around hydrogen from day one can support both point-to-point services and longer-range regional links, if airports can provide dependable liquid-hydrogen refueling. Stralis, meanwhile, is using a conventional fixed-wing airframe to de-risk the hydrogen-electric powertrain before rolling it into a 15-passenger platform. In both cases, maturing the fuel chain—handling, transfer, boil-off control, and safety checks—at a busy airport environment is as important as powertrain performance.

The next milestones are clear from the companies’ stated plans. Stralis is preparing for technology demonstrator flights in Southeast Queensland ahead of its bid to begin commercial service on the Brisbane–Gladstone corridor in 2027. Integrating green hydrogen production from water and renewable electricity keeps the fuel source aligned with airlines’ net-zero goals by cutting emissions both in flight and along the supply chain. The Hydrogen Flight Alliance formed in June 2023 to underpin those ambitions by pooling expertise across aviation, energy, and infrastructure, giving the sector a forum to align aircraft readiness with ground systems and route planning.

At Christchurch Airport, the focus now turns to repetition and scale—running more transfers, refining equipment and procedures, and building confidence that liquid hydrogen can be handled as predictably as jet fuel. Airport teams and engineers are expected to iterate on the composite tank designs and dispensing hardware proven during the demonstration so operators can standardize turnaround times and safety steps for future hydrogen-electric flights. For passengers, the promise is quieter aircraft that emit only water vapor; for airlines and regional communities, the hope is reliable service at lower operating costs, if the technology performs as the companies project.

There are still hurdles, including expanding the supply of liquid hydrogen and standardizing fueling interfaces across different aircraft types. Stralis’ 30 kg Dewar vessels, registered with support from BOC Australia, are an early answer to the question of how to move cryogenic fuel safely on the ground, but larger-scale storage and distribution will follow if commercial services take off. For AMSL Aero’s Vertiia, the target range of 1,000 km at a 500kg payload and 300 km/h cruise speed will be tested in real-world conditions as the company progresses to flight trials. Results from those flights, and from Stralis’ Bonanza A36-HE demonstrator, will shape how quickly airports adopt new refueling infrastructure.

For now, the Christchurch Airport breakthrough stands as a concrete proof that the pieces can fit together at an international airport: a liquefier producing fuel on site, storage tailored to cryogenic hydrogen, and controlled transfer into aircraft-ready composite tanks. The companies behind the test say it is a necessary step on a short runway to first flights. If timelines hold—AMSL Aero aiming for liquid hydrogen flights “next year” and Stralis targeting Australia’s first hydrogen-electric flight in late 2025—Australasia could see a new class of regional aircraft in service by 2027, running on a fuel that leaves only water vapor in its wake.