The Australian government has awarded a grant worth A$3 million (about $1.9 million USD) to support AMSL Aero’s work to develop its Vertiia hydrogen-electric VTOL aircraft. Announcing the award on August 18, the Sydney-based start-up explained that it is part of a wider two-year project called Liquid Hydrogen Powered Aircraft for Regional and Remote Australia that is backed with a total of A$7.56 million.
AMSL Aero is working with liquid hydrogen supplier Fabrum, along with universities Monash and Deakin, to address the technical, regulatory, and safety challenges associated with deploying hydrogen-electric VTOL aircraft to open up air services to smaller and more remote communities in Australia. The project will focus on tasks such as developing safe liquid hydrogen refueling systems and testing advanced fuel measurement techniques and power distribution as part of flight testing of the Vertiia.
The latest funding for the Vertiia has come from the Department of Industry Cooperative Research Centres Program. The government is seeking data to help it develop regulations for the new mode of transportation. Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority has indicated that it may be ready to approve eVTOL commercial flights between 2027 and 2029.
AMSL has previously secured funding from private investors, including IP Group Australia, Telstra Super, Host Plus, and StB Capital Partners. The company is based at Bankstown Airport near Sydney, where it started untethered testing with its first Vertiia prototype in November 2024.