Charles Alcock is managing editor of the AIN Media Group, having rejoined the company in 2019. He has been an aviation journalist since 1986, and previously worked for AIN from 1990 to 2017, most recently as editor-in-chief. His main focus is on covering new aviation technology and business models, as well as international news.
Having been raised in the London area, Alcock studied at the University of Manchester in the UK and earned an honors degree in Politics and Modern History. He speaks English and French, and some German.

Managing Editor

The AeroDelft student innovation team at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands is preparing to fly its Phoenix PT hydrogen aircraft. Initially, the unmanned aircraft prototype will be powered by electric batteries, but subsequently, the aerospace engineering students intend to convert it to gaseous hydrogen and later to liquid hydrogen.
During a briefing on July 31, the AeroDelft team also announced plans to develop a piloted, hydrogen-powered aircraft&nbsp;called the Phoenix FS. The students will build this around a four-seat Sling 4 kit-built aircraft that they took delivery of last week.
During the “Cleaner Skies” event that marked the end of the academic year for the Dutch university, the AeroDelft team confirmed that they are now moving from the design to flight testing phase of their project. “With the development phase largely behind us, we are confident that our Phoenix will take off to pave the path to cleaner skies,” said team manager Jan-Willem van Zwieten.
The design for the Phoenix PT prototype was unveiled in February. According to prototype technical manager Sam Rutten, the AeroDelft team expects to start flight testing this model during the course of the next academic year.
Over the past 12 months, the students have been researching, developing, and testing the internal components for the Phoenix FS model, negotiating agreements with suppliers, including the choice of the kit-built aircraft itself. “Of the large puzzle that we had to solve over the past year, the aircraft itself was the missing piece,” said Phoenix FS technical manager Matthew Dekkers. “Now that we finally have our own aircraft we can start integrating the systems that were developed over the past year.”
The July 31 <a href="https://youtu.be/HLo4JHqRWZ0">briefing</a> from Valkenburg Airport included a video showing the first taxiing tests for the Phoenix PT and a virtual reality tour to show how the hydrogen propulsion system will be configured. The multinational team, which consists of over 50 students, called for Dutch civil aviation authorities to make more certification personnel available to support the rapid prototyping of sustainable aviation technologies.
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Charles Alcock

The AeroDelft team of aerospace engineering students is using a kit-built Sling 4 composite airplane as the basis for its planned hydrogen-powered manned aircraft. (Image: AeroDelft)

AeroDelft Students Prepare for Hydrogen Aircraft Flight Testing

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