Targeted at commercial and military, hydrogen-powered drones are coming

The last time hydrogen-laden flying vessels zipped around the heavens didn’t end all that well, but that isn’t stopping Heven Drones from fueling up its H2D55 drone. The company claims the octacopter can fly for over an hour and a half, with a payload of 7 kg (15 lbs).

The drones are built to spec, and take two-three months to complete. The company is a little cagey about the exact pricing, but on the sly a source within the company suggests that you could probably buy a couple of Toyota Corollas for the price of one of its drones. Then again, Corollas don’t fly, and why the hell would you want two, so let’s get back to drones.

The company says the H2D55 is the first in a planned lineup of three hydrogen-fueled drones that will be released over the next year, and that the models coming later this year will have additional flight time and payload capacity.

“Commercial use case examples range from last-mile and just-in-time (JIT) delivery, measuring the nutrient levels of soil and precision crop spraying to collecting risk-assessment data for construction companies, surveying real estate for reforestation projects and aiding emergency responders in risk assessment and delivery of life saving equipment,” said Bentzion Levinson, founder and CEO of Heven Drones. On the defense side, the company envisions more extensive surveillance missions and supply of medical aid, food and ammunition to soldiers.

“We are delighted to bring hydrogen-powered drones to the global market and we are excited to see the expanding range of use cases across numerous industries,” said Levinson, “Not only do actionable drones add immense value to key areas of our economy and society, but we are working to ensure that this value is compounded by reduced carbon emissions and general energy efficiency by using hydrogen. The H2D55 is our first step towards achieving this vision.”

Targeted at commercial and military, hydrogen-powered drones are coming by Haje Jan Kamps originally published on TechCrunch