EcoJet Airlines, the Edinburgh-based service that aimed to change into the world’s first totally electrical airline, has collapsed into voluntary liquidation after failing to safe £20million in funding.
The Scottish start-up, established in 2023 by entrepreneur Dale Vince OBE, by no means launched commercial passenger companies before getting into liquidation.
Mr Vince, who has donated greater than £5million to the Labour Party and is the proprietor of Forest Green Rovers soccer membership, co-founded the corporate alongside pilot Brent Smith with plans to rework the aviation business by means of electrical flight expertise.
Court paperwork filed in late January present a petition was submitted to Edinburgh Sheriff Court in search of to wind up the corporate and appoint interim liquidators.
The board subsequently moved to position the enterprise into voluntary liquidation, bringing an abrupt finish to the enterprise.
EcoJet had outlined plans to transform typical plane utilizing hydrogen-electric powertrains designed to ship the identical efficiency as conventional engines whereas eliminating carbon dioxide emissions.
The firm’s first deliberate route was meant to attach Edinburgh and Southampton.
Further enlargement had been deliberate into European locations, with longer worldwide routes thought of because the expertise developed.
At the launch of the airline, Mr Vince stated: “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.”
The start-up by no means launched commercial passenger companies before getting into liquidation
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Environmental claims shaped a central half of the corporate’s technique, with EcoJet stating retrofitting present plane moderately than constructing new planes might stop round 90,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year.
The expertise proposed by the corporate would produce water vapour as the one byproduct.
EcoJet stated this vapour can be captured and launched into the decrease ambiance in an effort to restrict the formation of contrails.
Paul Dounis and Mark Harper, from Opus Restructuring, have been appointed as provisional liquidators to supervise the winding-up course of.
A wall at Mr Vince’s Forest Green Rovers soccer membership
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Opus Restructuring confirmed EcoJet operated as a start-up firm and didn’t possess important belongings.
An announcement from the agency stated: “The members have elected to fund the liquidation process to ensure that the company’s employees receive their full statutory entitlements.”
This association means workers will obtain their statutory funds regardless of the corporate getting into liquidation.
The collapse marks a swift finish for the aviation enterprise, which existed for slightly below three years and by no means carried a paying passenger.
Domestic companies had initially been scheduled to launch in 2024.
However, technological challenges and regulatory necessities meant the airline was unable to start operations.
Mr Vince stated the mission had encountered delays in aligning expertise improvement with regulatory approvals.
Speaking to The Herald, he stated: “We remain committed to electrifying all forms of transport – aviation is the last frontier and the hardest. It’s taking longer than we hoped to get the technology and regulatory pieces of the puzzle in alignment, and so we’re pausing work at this time.”
EcoJet is amongst a number of UK airways which have ceased buying and selling in current months.
Dale Vince stated aviation stays essentially the most tough type of transport to switch to electrical energy
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Data from the UK Civil Aviation Authority exhibits three different carriers entered liquidation throughout 2025.
These included Blue Islands Limited and Air Kilroe Limited, which traded as Eastern Airways, each of which entered liquidation in November.
Play Airlines additionally ceased operations earlier within the 12 months in September.
The closure of EcoJet highlights the challenges going through new aviation ventures trying to develop low-emission applied sciences whereas navigating regulatory necessities and the numerous prices concerned in launching airline operations.
