Following a busy summer, the second half of 2024 has proven to be a highly productive and exciting time for SATE, with partners driving sustainable aviation projects forward across the consortium. From the successful Windracers ULTRA trial between Westray and Eday, to SATE’s ongoing participation in the CAA’s BVLOS sandbox, our partners have brought tangible results and innovative solutions for the aviation industry’s transition to net zero.

The team have continued to engage with stakeholders from across the industry. We’ve seen partners welcome political stakeholders on site, while others have played a key role in the newly established Jet Zero Taskforce, which promises to support innovation, economic growth and the decarbonisation of the UK aviation sector.

The 10^th annual Orkney Aviation Festival proved to be a great opportunity for our partners to meet with local community members to discuss the environmental, economic and connectivity benefits that sustainable aviation holds for Scotland’s remote and rural communities.

HITRANS

HITRANS have been busy in recent months, attending and speaking at a number of events to highlight the work underway to increase connectivity across the Highlands and Islands. Recent work includes presentations to the cross-party group on aviation, SEStran’s logistics and freight forum, and Smart Classes. These presentations highlighted ongoing collaborations with SATE and the potential of sustainable aviation technologies to improve regional connectivity and reduce emissions.

The team rounded out the year in style, collecting the Urban Air Mobility Award at the 2024 CiTTi Awards, which celebrates innovation in the effective movement of people, goods and materials through urban environments.

Cranfield Aerospace

Cranfield Aerospace has been busy driving conversation forward about the role of hydrogen in the future of sustainable aviation. The plenary launch of the Jet Zero Taskforce, hosted by the secretary of state for transport, saw CAeS meet with aviation minister Mike Kane.

Similarly productive conversations were had with the Federal Aviation Administration, who paid a visit to Cranfield to discuss hydrogen propulsion certification. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero also paid a visit for an exciting discussion about hydrogen’s role in aviation decarbonisation.

Television host James May rounded out the visitors to CAeS this year – he was given a tech demonstration by Cranfield engineers before chatting with the team about hydrogen-propulsion technology.

EMEC

EMEC attended the Ocean Energy Europe Annual Conference, meeting with industry colleagues to discuss sector development with a focus on teamwork and collaboration. Running in tandem with the event was a boat trip which gave delegates the chance to take a boat trip to the EMEC tidal test site. The event included a tour of the onshore tidal energy substation, green hydrogen R&D facilities and vanadium flow batteries.

HIAL & Loganair

This year marked a major milestone for Loganair, which celebrated 50 years of service provision to islands of Barra and Tiree. To mark this occasion, the longtime advocate for regional connectivity surprised longstanding flyers Stewart Howat of Barra and Janis MacArthur of Tiree with complimentary vouchers. The celebrations continued as Loganair received Sustainable Airline of the Year award by the European Regions Airline Association.

HAV

Hybrid Air Vehicles attended the Farnborough International Airshow alongside other SATE partners, with CEO Tom Grundy on hand to discuss positioning Airlander 10 as the world’s most sustainable large aircraft. Former marketing director at EasyJet Tony Anderson hosted an illuminating panel discussion, outlining the journey to service for Airlander and the considerable benefits for emissions and connectivity promised by its integration.

You can watch the full interview by clicking here.

Windracers  

Windracers has been active in the third quarter of 2024, trialling a regular delivery service using the ULTRA to deliver packages between the islands of Westray and Eday for nine weeks.  During this delivery service trial, Windracers gained important knowledge on how to establish a service in the area for the long term and, alongside EMEC, were featured on a Channel 4 news report and met with Kerry McCarthy MP, Minister for Climate.

Working with SATE, the team produced a video that goes into more depth on how the collaboration with Streamline makes delivery more efficient on the Orkney Islands. This video, along with ULTRA, was featured at a stakeholder day at the Pickaquoy Centre in Kirkwall, allowing people to see the aircraft up close. Windracers also published a report from ornithologist Dr Roy Armstrong and ecologist Caitlin Henderson that explained that the ULTRA’s flights in Orkney had zero impact on the local seabird populations.

Beyond Orkney, Windracers also took part in the annual DroneX show at the London Excel Centre in September.

UHI  

Professor Andrew Rae delivered a profound talk to an Orkney audience at King Street Hall. Andrew traced his relationship with aviation back to his grandfather, John Rae, who was a pilot with Scotland’s first civil air service before joining Ted Fresson’s Highland Airways, which ran the first air mail route between Orkney and the Scottish mainland.

His forebear’s passion for aviation and innovation continues to the present day and beyond, as Andrew observes that “where once they toiled, we endeavour to forge new routes, new operations, and new opportunities for the benefit of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland.”

Wishing all our SATE partners and stakeholders an enjoyable festive season. We look forward to the New Year and continuing our work on developing sustainable aviation for the Highlands & Islands.