Airbus has launched the LEIA project, short for Large Scale Integration Demonstrator of Hybrid Electrical Architecture, to develop a complete hybrid-electric energy system for future commercial aircraft. Announced on July 22, 2026, in Farnborough, UK, the initiative brings together partners from the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States, and receives backing from the EU Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking. It focuses on high-voltage power generation and distribution for short to medium range aircraft, aiming to turn individual technical advances into fully certified systems ready for real aircraft use.
According to Karim Mokaddem, Airbus Head of Aircraft of Tomorrow Research and Technology, this work marks a key turning point in aircraft design, building both the physical and digital foundation for next-generation flight. He noted that progress lies not only in new energy sources but also in the supporting systems that manage them. LEIA follows the successful SWITCH project, which finished important lab tests of hybrid-electric parts earlier this July with lead work from Collins Aerospace, alongside partners Pratt & Whitney, GKN Aerospace and MTU Aero Engines.
Those tested components are now being moved to Airbus’ STEP laboratory in Ottobrunn, Germany, where teams will check how they connect with batteries, energy management tools and other aircraft systems. Airbus will lead the integration of scalable motors, advanced controllers and power distribution gear, with full system tests set to end in a major ground demonstration by 2027. Both SWITCH and LEIA form part of wider Airbus efforts under Clean Aviation programmes to cut aviation emissions, with LEIA’s additional partners including AVL, Safran, SAFT, the Netherlands Aerospace Centre and multiple research institutions across Europe.
