- Ehang completed the maiden flight of the EH216-S in downtown Shanghai, where it will start a regular trial run of eVTOL sightseeing tours.
- This will prepare Ehang for the next step of commercializing air cab operations in Shanghai.
Chinese electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) developer Ehang (NASDAQ: EH) has completed the maiden flight of its EH216-S in Shanghai, exploring urban air mobility operations in the Chinese megacity.
The company completed the milestone today at Longhua Airport in downtown Shanghai, located near the Huangpu River, and announced that it will launch a regular trial run of eVTOL sightseeing tours.
This will prepare Ehang for the next step in commercializing air cab operations in Shanghai, making regular air mobility a reality in a megacity, it said.
Completing the flight was an EH216-S eVTOL delivered by Ehang to HYNFAR-UAM -- the first company in Shanghai to specialize in eVTOL operations.
Together with HYNFAR-UAM and other partners, Ehang will use Longhua Airport to explore the use of eVTOL in scenarios including manned transportation, travel and tourism, the company said.
China has significantly loosened controls on low-altitude airspace over the past few years in hopes of pushing the development of a so-called low-altitude economy.
This has opened up new opportunities for eVTOL makers and shown local governments where potential new economic growth could emerge.
In the case of Shanghai, the eastern Chinese city released an action plan for low-altitude economic development in August 2024, with the goal of establishing a complete industrial system for the research and development, design, manufacturing, airworthiness, testing, and commercial application of new low-altitude aircraft by 2027.
The city aims for the core low-altitude economy industry to reach more than RMB 50 billion ($6.8 billion) by then and become one of the global leaders in low-altitude economy innovation and development.
Ehang, one of the earliest eVTOL makers in China, announced on February 2, 2024 that the EH216-S has an official guide price of RMB 2.39 million in China.
The EH216-S is powered by batteries and has a maximum takeoff weight of 620 kilograms, according to information previously announced by Ehang.
The eVTOL has a maximum flight speed of 130 kilometers per hour and a maximum range of 25 minutes.
Last November, Ehang completed the first flight test of the solid-state battery-powered EH216-S, with a flight duration of 48 minutes and 10 seconds.
The company delivered 63 units of EH216 series in the third quarter of 2024, the highest quarterly delivery volume in its history, according to its third-quarter earnings report.
In the first three quarters of last year, a total of 138 units of the EH216 series were delivered.
The EH216 family includes the standard EH216-S for passenger transportation, the EH216-F for aerial firefighting, and the EH216-L for aerial logistics.
($1 = RMB 7.3317)
Ehang says it gets clearance to mass produce its EH216-S eVTOL in China
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