At a time when science and technology are booming, hydrogen-electric transport drones have emerged, setting off a storm of innovation in the field of drones. It uses hydrogen fuel cells as its power core, and compared with traditional lithium battery drones, it has significant advantages such as long flight time, zero emissions, and fast charging. For example, the "Tianmu Mountain No. 1" can last for 4 hours, and Xiehydrogen's products can carry more than 60kg. Today, it has emerged in many fields such as logistics distribution, inspection and monitoring, opening a new chapter in the application of drones.

At the end of 2024, the FC30 DJI transport drone, the first in China equipped with a hydrogen power system, produced by Zhejiang Hydrogen Aviation Technology Co., Ltd., realized a cross-island material transportation flight in Zhoushan. This also means that drones have a new solution in energy power. This flight further verified the potential of hydrogen electricity in long-term performance and provided more possibilities for the widespread application of drones.

Hydrogen Air Technology is a high-tech enterprise located in Deqing Geographic Information Town, Zhejiang Province, which has been deeply involved in the field of hydrogen fuel cells for many years. In 2024, its fuel cell technology obtained the "IEC Certification Certificate" from TÜV Rheinland, Germany, which is also the world's first air-cooled fuel cell safety module certificate.

At about 12 noon that day, the drone took off from Liuheng Island under the control of a drone pilot. Under the dual test of moderate rain and level 7 gusts, it successfully flew over the sea and delivered medical supplies to the Xuanshan Village Health Center on Xuanshan Island , which was several kilometers away in a straight line. It then returned to the take-off point along the same route. The entire flight distance was more than 18 kilometers and it took only 25 minutes.

The inter-island delivery by drone is exactly what the island residents are looking forward to. It is understood that although the distance between the two islands is not far, the island residents still need to rely on ferries to travel. If the island health center does not have urgently needed medicines, residents need to take a ferry for 2 hours to go out to get or buy medicines. If there is a typhoon or bad weather, the ferry will stop operating. Therefore, the distribution of medical supplies is particularly urgent.

In fact, with the development of the low-altitude economy, transport drones are playing an active role in many fields such as logistics distribution and emergency rescue, and the market demand is promising. However, drones on the market currently mainly rely on lithium batteries, and the short battery life is a major bottleneck in their promotion and application.

Zhong Dahong , who was in charge of the drone flight verification , is the drone director of Zhejiang Hydrogen Aviation Technology Co., Ltd. He introduced that FC30 is the first carrier drone of DJI. Based on the original lithium battery, it is equipped with a hydrogen-electric power system, and the flight time can reach 1 hour, which is three times the original flight time, and the load capacity is 15 kilograms.

"The flight went very smoothly. Hydrogen power made up for the shortcomings of lithium batteries and greatly improved the flight time. There is a saying in the industry: the upper limit of lithium batteries is the lower limit of our fuel cells. Therefore, we have a lot of room for development in the future," said Zhong Dahong confidently.

Based on its rich experience in the field of air-cooled fuel cells, Hydrogen Air Technology is continuously promoting technological innovation with aviation applications as the driving force. Previously, drones equipped with air-cooled fuel cells have been field tested in extreme environments, including altitudes of 0 to 5,300 meters and extremely cold weather of minus 40 degrees Celsius, with high reliability.