Southend-based carrier Avooma Airlines has today signed an exclusive collaboration agreement with The AirCraft Company, an aircraft manufacturer based in Wichita, Kansas, USA.
The two companies will explore the opportunity to advance the decarbonisation of regional aviation, utilising The AirCraft Company’s Pangea® family of 30- and 52-seat hybrid-electric regional aircraft, with a decision on potential future fleet investments expected later this year.
The Pangea® family uses electric-first™ and hybrid-on-demand™ principles which will allow the aircraft to travel up to 400km using its onboard batteries, and up to 800km using a SAF- and hydrogen-compatible range extender. This range could allow Avooma Airlines to serve communities throughout the entire UK and Republic of Ireland, as well as several key European business centres, without any CO2 emissions.
Mario Asselin, co-CEO of The AirCraft Company said that the deal with Avooma “will help to enhance regional travel in the UK and the Republic of Ireland for years to come, and set a strong example for other operators to follow.”
Jon Davies, Chief Vision Officer of Avooma Airlines, added that “When establishing Avooma, we pledged to make environmental sustainability one of the three core principles of our business (People, Places & the Planet). I’m incredibly excited to announce this agreement with The AirCraft Company as it will act as a catalyst for change within our sector. Regional aviation is vital for local communities, and it’s crucial that we take steps like this to ensure our long-term viability.”
Avooma plans to support this vision by working with OEMs and suppliers to help create a bespoke and environmentally friendly supply chain that integrates emerging and new technologies, such as the use of AI-inspired tools that enhance the customer experience, and hybrid-electric vehicles for its ground operations in order to help reduce emissions wherever possible.
As part of today’s agreement, Mario Asselin will join Avooma Airlines’ advisory board, and both Jon Davies and Cianan Kelly, Avooma’s newly appointed Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer, will join the advisory board of The AirCraft Company, becoming the first operator representatives to do so. This sharing of knowledge and skills will help guide the industry forward in re-establishing air services to all.
Simon has been writing aviation articles for nearly 10 years and is the senior article writer at Fresh Aviation, with a background in aviation and a commercial pilot Simon knows his stuff in the aviation world. Simon has spoken on BBC Radio, contributed to Bristol Post and has various aviation articles on various websites.