AeroVironment has successfully flown it’s Global Observer unmanned aircraft for the first time powered by a hydrogen-fueled propulsion system. With a wingspan of 175 feet, the Global Observer is a long-endurance UAV that could stay aloft up to a week at a time according to the company.
The first hydrogen fueled flight lasted four hours and was at lower altitudes above Edwards Air Force Base in California. But the company says the aircraft would fly missions at 65,000 feet making it an observation platform and communications link over a very wide area approximately 600 miles in diameter. By combining a pair of Global Observers, each of which could fly for up to a week at a time, operators could provide continuous coverage over any part of the earth’s surface for “as long as needed” according to AeroVironment.
