Europe
“Flying Green Doesn’t Matter Anymore in the Trump Era”
• The Trump era has seen a shift in the aviation industry towards electric and hydrogen aircraft.
• The stocks of air taxi makers, eVTOL, have seen a rally, with Joby Aviation and Archer Aviation reporting earnings up 48% and 213% respectively.
• Investors are focusing on the U.S.’s position in the eVTOL race with China.
• In-development clean-aviation startups, Lilium and Volocopter, are undergoing insolvency procedures.
• Other zero-emission aviation projects, including ATR’s hybrid-electric turboprop and Airbus’s ZEROe project, have been paused due to slow hydrogen infrastructure and fuel cell scaling.
• The viability of these zero-emission vehicles depends on immature technologies, such as sourcing hydrogen, preparing airports for hydrogen planes, and the performance of batteries.
• The Federal Aviation Administration classifies eVTOL vehicles in a special category and proposed stringent rules.
• Despite these challenges, eVTOL projects are still being pursued, with Californians Joby and Archer raising significant funds.
• The sector was inflated by green marketing during a time when “flight shaming” was a concern.
• The practical next steps are likely more mundane, involving sticking a battery in a short-range regional plane.
• The projects are unappealing due to the high risk and limited reward of regional flights, making them unappealing.
