A research team from Hohhot Modern Information Technology School in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region completed the maiden flight of the world's first 23-kg LY-3200H hydrogen-powered connected-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drone on Dec 5.

This marks a major step forward in China's research, development, and commercialization of hydrogen-powered unmanned aerial vehicle technology.

The model features a unique connected-wing aerodynamic design and is equipped with a 2 kW hydrogen fuel cell system developed by Qingyan Yi Hydrogen Energy Technology Co, marking an innovative application of clean energy in small hybrid-wing VTOL drones.

Due to limited payload capacity, small hybrid-wing VTOL drones under 25 kg rarely carry both fuel cells and hydrogen tanks, making this successful integration a national rarity.

With longer endurance, extended service life, and reliable performance in temperatures as low as –20 C to –30 C, the drone is particularly suited for Inner Mongolia and other northern regions.