Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) recently concluded a £7 million ($8.7 million) agreement with the regional government of South Yorkshire, to produce the Airlander 10 hybrid-electric airship at Doncaster in the north of England. The deal is described as “a loan investment” by the local authority, that will “kickstart a new green aerospace cluster for the region” and HAV aims to create over 1,200 highly skilled jobs in new green technologies for the area.
HAV assembled and test-flew the prototype Airlander at Cardington near Bedford, the airfield which housed the UK’s great airship developments in the 1930s. The two huge, iconic hangars are still there, and HAV’s design office remains in Bedford in the south of England. But the company has looked north for financial help to launch production. It plans to build 12 Airlanders per year from 2026 and expects the airships to carry up to around 100 passengers in some applications.
However, the plan cannot proceed unless HAV secures a strategic investor. It needs at least £100 million to begin construction. Last June, the company announced a “launch order” of 10 aircraft from Spanish airline Air Nostrum. In reality, this is a lease agreement that has not yet provided HAV with significant funding.
The announcement did not specify the proposed location for the production site. Late last year, Doncaster Sheffield Airport was closed by its private owner, the Peel Group, which said it was not financially viable and had no credible buyer. Doncaster city officials are now pursuing a compulsory purchase order for the site.
