Conceptual Design and Technology Sensitivity Analysis of a Fuel Cell Short-Range Aircraft

This work presents conceptual design activities carried out within the Clean Aviation FAME (Fuel cell propulsion system for Aircraft Megawatt Engines) project, focused on a liquid hydrogen and fuel-cell-powered short-range aircraft targeting a 2035 entry into service. A parametric analysis framework was developed to support the definition and optimization of aircraft-level architectures under realistic regulatory and technological constraints. Trade studies were conducted to investigate the influence of LH2 tank design parameters and propulsion system layout on fuel consumption and overall performance. The current FAME concept aircraft—featuring four 2.5 MW fuel cell propulsion systems and a 110 m² wing—is introduced and assessed. A final sensitivity analysis evaluates the configuration’s robustness to degraded fuel cell efficiency and increased drag due to thermal management integration. Results demonstrate that performance deteriorates nonlinearly as technological assumptions degrade, reinforcing the need to maintain high fuel cell efficiency and effective integration of cooling systems to ensure compliance with mission and regulatory requirements.