Africa faces an urgent need for sustainable and affordable aerial services, especially in light of its ageing infrastructure, growing infrastructure deficit, and the looming impacts of climate change.
These challenges demand innovative and environmentally responsible solutions that can bridge the gap in essential services, enhance disaster response, and support critical infrastructure. As these pressures grow, it is vital to have accessible, long-range aerial capabilities that can be deployed cost-effectively while minimising environmental impact.
FlyH2 Aerospace is uniquely positioned to address these challenges with its Dragonfly V aircraft—a fixed-wing, hydrogen-powered unmanned aircraft designed specifically for long-range sensing and emergency payload delivery.
The Dragonfly V is our first aircraft, and commercialising it is the initial step towards making affordable aerial services a reality in Africa. With an endurance of up to 16 hours, the Dragonfly V is well-suited for commercial, industrial, and climate-related emergency response applications.
Africa has a pressing need for affordable and accessible regional passenger aviation, yet only 10% of Africans can currently afford air travel. Hydrogen-based technology has the potential to change this by lowering both fuel and maintenance costs—the largest expenses in aviation. By reducing these costs, aviation will become accessible to more people across Africa.
Supporting this transition is Africa’s rapidly expanding hydrogen economy which is driven by several large-scale green hydrogen projects. Namibia’s $10 billion Hyphen Hydrogen Energy Project aims to produce 300,000 tons of green hydrogen annually by 2026 while in Mauritania, Project Nour targets up to 10 GW of electrolysis capacity by 2030.
South Africa’s Hydrogen Society Roadmap plans for 10 GW of capacity and 500 kilotons of hydrogen annually by 2030. These initiatives represent billions in investment and significant job creation potential, positioning Africa as a leader in global green hydrogen production. South Africa alone projects that its hydrogen economy could add 3.6% to GDP and create 370,000 jobs by 2050.
Africa’s green hydrogen economy needs off-takers, and developing local fuel cell technology will create substantial job opportunities. Hydrogen is the only viable zero-carbon fuel for aviation, as batteries are too heavy and biofuels are impractical due to food security concerns.
With abundant renewable energy resources, Africa is uniquely positioned to lead in sustainable aviation. Building a local hydrogen aviation industry would allow Africa to meet its own hydrogen needs before focusing on exports, thereby lowering costs, creating jobs, building capacity, and strengthening supply chains—all contributing to greater economic resilience across the continent.
Meeting Africa’s climate goals is critical, and hydrogen aviation is a key part of the solution. South Africa has committed to the Paris Agreement requiring net-zero emissions by 2050. Aviation accounts for 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Decarbonising this sector is more straightforward than others due to the centralised infrastructure of airports. European initiatives like ZeroAvia’s hydrogen aircraft retrofits and France’s hydrogen airport projects show the potential of hydrogen-powered aviation. South Africa must begin building its own hydrogen-powered UAS, eVTOL, and regional air transport projects now, ensuring that in 20 years, Africa can rely on locally developed hydrogen aviation technologies rather than importing them. The time to act is now.
Local Development of Fuel Cell Stacks
While South Africa has well-established membrane electrode assembly (MEA) capabilities through organisations like HySA Catalysis, HyPlat, and Isondo Precious Metals, the gap remains in local stack development capacity. FlyH2 aims to address this gap by leveraging our internal skills and collaborating with local partners to advance hydrogen fuel cell technology for mobility applications. We have alreadymade progress by developing two hydrogen fuel cell prototypes.
The first was a 3-cell test stack built at home, and the second—a 250-watt stack—was developed in 2015 in collaboration with HySA Catalysis and the University of Cape Town. It’s time to build on these successes. By leveraging South Africa’s government support programs and grants, FlyH2 can lower the ultimate costs of development, supporting the local advancement of hydrogen fuel cell technology beyond just aviation. FlyH2 is perfectly poised to capitalise on this opportunity and drive the growth of sustainable hydrogen technologies.
Dragonfly V as a Catalyst
The commercialisation of Dragonfly V, Africa’s first long-range hydrogen-powered unmanned aircraft, will catalyse local development in hydrogen-powered aviation and fuel cell technology. FlyH2 has already demonstrated significant progress; in addition to the stack prototypes we have produced a unique flying unmanned aircraft and validated market demand.
By focusing on the commercialisation of Dragonfly V, FlyH2 aims to propel the aviation industry toward sustainable, long-term solutions, creating a practical pathway for green aviation in Africa.
With Dragonfly V positioned for profitability, FlyH2 will be well-resourced to further innovate in fuel cell technology and advance the development of future Dragonfly V variants. These include a VTOL model for shipping and confined-space operations, a larger cargo model for the localised transport of aid and a solar-augmented ultra-long-endurance model for climate-event support operations. Dragonfly V is just the first of many aircraft to be developed by FlyH2 Aerospace.
Our strategy is to commercialise Dragonfly V using imported fuel cells while simultaneously developing our own local fuel cells using locally developed MEA. This approach will allow us to replace the imported units with locally produced ones without interrupting aircraft production.
FlyH2 will mass-produce Dragonfly V and its variants to meet the growing demand driven by the advancements in global regulatory frameworks governing drones. We will locally manufacture the two 1 kW dual redundant fuel cells Dragonfly and its variants require.
This makes FlyH2 its own best customer, creating an inherent market for our fuel cell initiative. Currently, the high cost of imported fuel cells—$15,000 per kilowatt—poses a significant challenge, and reducing these costs is crucial to making our solutions accessible.
This approach not only supports our aircraft production but also forms the foundation for our fuel cell business unit, driving future developments and potential spin-offs. Once we have captured the African market, we plan to support new entrants in fuel cell UAS such as ALTI in Knysna and Midnite Aerobots in Cape Town, both of whom have expressed interest.
This represents a natural spin-off opportunity, allowing FlyH2 to contribute to the growth of hydrogen fuel cell technology in the broader UAS industry.
Our larger variant of Dragonfly V UAS will feature a 9 metre wingspan and feature a 150kg maximum-take-off weight (MTOW) with 75kg payload – almost sufficient payload to carry a man. This aircraft will be certified using manned aircraft certification standards and pave the way for manned aircraft.
Our next step will be to integrate hydrogen fuel cells into manned aircraft through partnerships with key local manufacturers. One potential starting partner is Jonker Sailplanes, a global leader in competition gliders, which has produced over 200 units primarily for export. We have engaged with Jonker to explore using fuel cells as sustainers for their gliders.
Other established manufacturers, such as Sling Aircraft, Jabiru Aircraft SA, and Robin Coss Aviation, have also demonstrated strong export success. These partnerships will enable us to create fuel cell variants for both local and export markets, positioning FlyH2 as a leader in sustainable regional aviation in Africa, much like global pioneers such as ZeroAvia.
Following the success of these ventures, FlyH2 will embark on an initiative to develop its own aircraft. The progression from developing UAS fuel cells to supplying and integrating them into manned aircraft lays a strong foundation for future hydrogen-powered regional passenger aviation solutions across Africa.
The commercialization of our hydrogen fuel cells will open up several significant spin-off opportunities, including potential integration with airport vehicles, forklifts, buses, trains, trucks, and eventually cars. Importantly, hydrogen fuel cells also present an ideal solution for portable, clean, quiet, and vibration-free power generation.
Imagine a low-cost hydrogen-powered generator that can be used in homes, garages, and buildings. By leveraging economies of scale, we could bring the cost of these generators down to make them affordable across Africa, potentially providing power to the 500 million homes currently without electricity.
This approach—where hydrogen carrier mechanisms can be refilled similarly to LP gas cylinders—offers a practical alternative to the challenges of solar energy in smaller homes, which often have limited roof space and require expensive batteries that need frequent replacement.
A hydrogen fuel cell system connected to a carrier mechanism could provide a more efficient and cost-effective solution for clean, reliable household energy, supporting everything from heating and cooking to essential appliances. The technology may not be there yet but these problems will likely be solved by the time these spin-offs are realised.
The future of sustainable aviation is in our hands, and the time to act is now. FlyH2 Aerospace is committed to leading this transformation by commercialising the Dragonfly V and driving the adoption of hydrogen-powered technologies. With a focus on regional aviation, innovative partnerships, and accessible fuel cell solutions, FlyH2 is poised to make a lasting impact across Africa. By expanding into manned aircraft and portable power solutions, we aim to redefine not only aviation but also energy access for millions, ensuring a greener and more sustainable future.
This article was elaborated and written by Mark van Wyk, CEO, FlyH2 Aerospace.
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