Flying taxis could be used for public transport within the next five years on the mainland, according to a senior executive of Chinese passenger drone maker EHang Holdings.
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“I believe that by 2030, China will likely have fixed-route air shuttle services,” chief financial officer Conor Yang said in an interview on Tuesday. “It’s also possible that in some cities, with sufficient infrastructure such as take-off and landing points, air taxi services could emerge.”
The Nasdaq-listed developer of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for urban air mobility and joint venture partner Hefei Heyi Aviation in March became the first companies in the world to receive certification from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) to operate autonomous passenger drones.
Yang said EHang was conducting trial flights in Guangzhou and Hefei to collect and analyse data before it starts operating in designated areas in these two cities by the end of this year. The Guangzhou-based company has received certification for its twin-passenger EH216-S aircraft, which has a top speed of 130km/h and a range of 30km.
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Flying taxis, airships and drones: the rise of China’s low-altitude economy
Flying taxis, airships and drones: the rise of China’s low-altitude economy
The EH216-S is available for 2.39 million yuan (US$331,000) on Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao.
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“We are seeing strong interest in our services overseas, particularly in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and even Latin America,” Yang said. He said EHang was in discussions with Thailand’s civil aviation authorities to operate eVTOLs in designated areas in the country after it completed its maiden passenger flight in Bangkok in November.