A British airline once promoted as the world’s first all-electric carrier has entered liquidation, bringing its ambitious plans for zero-emission aviation to an abrupt end.
Ecojet Airlines, founded in 2023 by entrepreneur Dale Vince, has been wound up after failing to secure additional funding.
Documents filed at Edinburgh Sheriff Court show that a petition was lodged to place the company into liquidation, with joint interim liquidators appointed to oversee the process.
According to reports, the airline had attempted to raise around £20 million before the decision to wind up the company.
Restructuring specialists Opus Restructuring confirmed that Paul Dounis and Mark Harper were appointed as provisional liquidators.
The firm said the move followed a “voluntary liquidation initiated by the company’s board”.
It added that Ecojet was “a start-up business and has no material assets”, and that shareholders would fund the liquidation to ensure employees receive their statutory entitlements.
Ecojet had outlined ambitious plans to transform air travel by developing an airline powered by hydrogen-electric technology.
The company planned to operate retrofitted aircraft with hydrogen-electric powertrains, aiming to dramatically reduce carbon emissions from aviation.
At the company’s launch, Vince said: “This is a vital frontier in the move to net zero, green living, whatever you choose to call it – and it’s absolutely doable. It’s a matter of when, not if.”
Initial plans included a route between Edinburgh and Southampton, alongside future flights across mainland Europe.
Ecojet’s concept was backed by Ecotricity, Vince’s green energy firm, which described the airline as the beginning of an aviation revolution.
The company said the approach of converting existing aircraft instead of building new ones could significantly reduce carbon emissions.
“The move marks the beginning of an aviation revolution by making net-zero, emission-free air travel possible for the first time.”
Ecojet planned to retrofit aircraft with hydrogen-electric systems capable of producing the same power as conventional engines while achieving “a 100% reduction in CO2 emissions”.
Despite the ambitious environmental goals, the collapse of the start-up highlights the financial and technological challenges facing efforts to develop zero-emission commercial aviation.