General Motors is taking its hydrogen fuel cell technology to the sky.

GM and Liebherr-Aerospace, an on-board aircraft system supplier, have partnered to develop ways to use hydrogen fuel cell power generation on an aircraft.

Yes, that means one day hydrogen fuel cells could propel a commercial jet.

But before that happens, the technology could do a lot more to save on jet fuel, emissions and other inefficiencies that currently exist on airplanes, said GM Executive Director of Global Hydrotec Charlie Freese.

“The fuel cell can bring in the air you're flying through, then we take hydrogen, which is stored on board, and combine it to make power and electricity; we can even make heat,” Freese told the Free Press.

It can also make water, leading to a huge fuel and emissions savings.

“A fuel cell is clean and the water product can be used to humidify the airplane, or we can capture it and use it to flush toilets and sinks,” Freese said. “The average aircraft takes off with two tons of water just to flush the toilet. We can now make water in flight.”

GM and Liebherr's lab demonstration of the uses for hydrogen fuel cells will be based on GM's Hydrotec fuel cell technology and built and tested at Liebherr-Aerospace in Toulouse, France. The work that's done through this partnership will prepare the technology to eventually be tested on aircraft.

Freese said aircraft use is the ultimate test for the power and versatility of hydrogen fuel cells.

On Tuesday, GM said it will engineer and supply its Ultium battery technology and its Hydrotec hydrogen fuel cell system to power locomotives in a partnership with Wabtec Corporation. Wabtec provides equipment and other services to the freight and rail industry.

In January, GM said it was partnering with Navistar Inc. and hydrogen provider OneH2 to develop a complete zero-emissions long-haul truck system across the United States.

“It's inevitable that hydrogen fuel cell technology will find its way into aerospace applications,” Freese said.

Beyond someday propelling an airplane, a more immediate use of the technology can be to propel the ground support vehicles at airports and replace the powerful, but loud and inefficient, turbines at the rear of commercial jets that currently make the electricity that flows through an aircraft, Freese said.

“You notice everyone loading bags has ear plugs on, it's because the auxiliary power turbine is so loud,” Freese said. “A fuel cell is quiet.”

The result would be an improved experience for customers and workers and lower emissions, he said.

“Over time, propulsion and moving the aircraft is possible through fuel cells, but that doesn't have to be the starting point,” Freese said. “Addressing some of these other issues first is important.”

Besides making water, a fuel cell in place of a turbine could make heat, Freese said.

“All the electricity on board, megawatts of power, is produced by the turbine in the back and that runs the lights and other systems,” Freese said. “The problem is because it gets cold up there, you use some of that power to heat the aircraft and that's not the most efficient way to use your power. With a fuel cell, our waste product is heat and you can use that to heat the craft.”

Another possibility is the fuel cells, if small enough, could replace miles of wiring in the plane that currently control sensors and other operating systems, taking off weight and lowering the cost to build the aircraft, Freese said.

“The change from the conventional to a hydrogen technology-based electrical power generation system means major systems modifications on board the aircraft that could result in better, more efficient performance of the plane,” said Francis Carla, chief technology officer at Liebherr-Aerospace. “This we want to prove and test thoroughly.”