It’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s a Chinese flying car
Summary
- China is developing the vehicles faster than any other country
In his state-of-the-nation address earlier this year, China’s prime minister, Li Qiang, spoke of fostering new engines of economic growth. In particular, he mentioned “the low-altitude economy". The phrase conjures images of flying cars, which might seem like science fiction to some. But in this area China is moving faster than most countries. Makers of flying cars, or electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles, have been getting the green light from the government.
The vehicles often look like very big consumer drones. Some are designed to be autonomous, meaning no pilot is needed. One model, the EH216-S made by EHang, a company in Guangdong province, was awarded a “production certificate" in April by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). That allows the firm to start mass production. The EH216-S is the first flying car to receive such regulatory approval anywhere in the world.
EHang has competition in China. An eVTOL from AutoFlight, a Shanghai-based firm, obtained a “type certificate" from the CAAC in March, signifying approval of its design. A model from XPeng, also based in Guangdong, is going through type certification. Hot on their rotors is Vertaxi—its eVTOL had its maiden flight in October.
There is foreign competition, too. But China accounts for 50% of the world’s eVTOL models, much more than America (18%) or Germany (8%), according to China Merchants Securities, a bank.
China has two big advantages. The first is the country’s edge in electric-vehicle technology, some of which is transferable from the driving sort to the flying sort. Batteries are especially important. The ones in eVTOLs must be light and high-capacity. China is home to the world’s biggest battery-makers. The leader, CATL, is wrestling with the challenges posed by flying cars.
The second advantage is enthusiasm from the government. It aims to set up what it calls “demonstration zones" of the low-altitude economy in areas such as the Pearl river delta and Yangtze delta by 2025. It is not entirely clear what these zones will entail, but the city of Shenzhen (in the Pearl river delta) plans to build more than 600 take-off-and-landing pads for low-flying aircraft by 2025, according to Xinhua, the country’s official news service.
The government is already thinking about how to manage the airspace once drones and eVTOLs really take off. Shenzhen has mandated the establishment of a “co-ordination mechanism" for low-altitude flights, one that would delineate the airspace. To the north, Nanjing has said it will open up 120 low-altitude flight paths by 2026. The CAAC will have a say in all this, too. In December it designated two new bands of low-altitude airspace for use by drones, helicopters and eVTOLs.
For now, eVTOL firms in China are targeting niche-use cases, such as sightseeing and emergency services. The majority of orders received by EHang have come from businesses or the government. But in the future the company hopes to offer flying-taxi rides at a similar price to cabs on the ground. The government has been encouraging. While Western regulators are taking a relatively cautious approach to eVTOLs, China is flying ahead.
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