China can see ‘Flying Taxis’ in three years, predicts ehang

Flying taxis will be a feasible transport method in China in the next three to five years, according to a senior executive at EelA company that makes autonomous air vehicles (AAVs).

The forecast of the vice president of Ehang that he comes Tianxing days after the company the First companyTogether with the Joint Venture partner Hefei Heyi Aviation, to obtain a certificate to operate “civil human-bearing pilotless air vehicles” from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Said The certification paves the way for commercial activities of its vehicles, so that paid human services and other cases can be brought with a low altitude that the company develops.

Initially, Ehang’s AAVs will be used for tourism, where passengers can drive past routes in Guangzhou and Hefei at the end of June, he told CNBC in an interview translated from Mandarin.

The company will gradually explore Air Taxi Services as the tourist operations progress. He mentioned Hefei and Shenzhen as examples of some of the first cities that were expected to receive air taxi services.

Ehang’s EH216-S, which received the certification, is a fully electric, pilotless two-year-old aviation vehicle with 16 propellers, according to Ehang’s website. It has a maximum design speed of 130 kilometers per hour, with a maximum range of 30 kilometers.

This year he expects to get the following certifications in extra cities, with the second series of locations for tourist operations that are expected to comprise Zhuhai, Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Wuxi, Wenzhou and Wuhan.

For the upcoming locations of Hefei and Guangzhou, he refused to share the price per ride, but hoped it would be reasonable enough to encourage more people to try out the pilotless air vehicle.

The experience should be “just like driving in a car,” he added, and noted that no helmet or parachute is required. He said that the initial length of the journeys offered by the company would vary from approximately three minutes to 10 minutes.

When demanding worldwide markets, he said that overseas partners had actively reached the news about certification, and he expected that Ehang could expand abroad in the coming years.

According to technology analysts, China means that commercial use of AAVs from passengers are innovation and leadership in transport and mobility.

“This is an important development and shot in China, which shows that technology innovation is accelerating,” says Ives, head of technology research at Wedbush Securities worldwide.

China has already settled as a world leader in electric vehicles and autonomous driving. In the meantime, flying taxis represent ‘one of the following limits for the car and technical industry,’ said Ives, adding that China has already created a clear lead in that space.

Beijing was first released Rules for unmanned aircraft flight – Vehicles without a pilot on board – in June 2023. On the other hand, the US still has to roll out comparable regulations.

Instead last year the Federal Aviation Administration of Washington General rules revealed For “powered -lift” vehicles, including some electric vertical start and landing (EVTOL) aircraft.

Evtol includes electrically driven aircraft designed to transport passengers and to go vertically and land without the need for runways. However, the FAA has focused on those who are tested manually.

Tu Le, founder of the car consultancy industry Sino Auto Insights, said CNBC that the US was hit in the back of China and even the EU in Evtols because of this lack of favorable policy, which lobbying, lobbying from competitive industries or “just politics.”

In the meantime, China has supported Evtol technology as part of his “low height economy“whose development has become an important policy goal. The term refers to economic activity that takes place in the airspace under 1,000 meters, well below the most commercial aircraft that are around 9,000 meters.

In addition to flying taxis and other EVTOLs, examples of the low-height economy unmanned drones include delivery and aer shuttle routes operated by helicopter.

The term has recently been included in China’s annual work report for 2025The government promises to promote its development. Beijing has also committed itself to stimulating consumption in the economy at low height, in particular in tourism at low heights, air sports and consumer drones, as part of a special action plan in March.

The Chinese economy at low height is already one of the fastest growing industries, of which it is expected to be 1.5 trillion Yuan ($ 205 billion) by 2025, and that almost double that by 2035, according to one Report by the Hurun research group.

Sino Auto Insights’ LE also credits China’s progress in the Evtols sector to a high degree of domestic competition.

In recent years, China has seen a major increase in potential players, because companies are preparing for a high -tech future that was once limited to Science Fiction.

Companies that invest in space include electric vehicle makers such as GAC, Geely and Xpeng.

Xpeng’s Flying Car Division, Xpeng Aero HT, completed a first flight of his “Land Carrier” product-a van combined last week with a 2-man quadcopter, the company told CNBC.

Xpeng Aero HT said it will hold a presale launch event and complete the construction of its mass production factory in the second half of the year. It is also intended to obtain certifications for airworthiness towards the end of the year.

Last month, Xpeng Motors CEO HE XIAOPENG told state media The company plans to produce flying cars by 2026, because the Chinese economy is stimulated at a low altitude by supporting policy.

Despite the fact that China leads in Evtol Regulation, it is expected that it is expected to be with competition from international companies that also invest in and building different types of air vehicle technologies.

Some of those companies are international companies such as America’s Boeing, the French Airbus and the Brazilian company Embraer, who have taken steps to take advantage of the future demand for flying cars.

Countless startups, including Joby Aviation, Archer and Wisk, in the US there are also planning to launch various commercial air tax services in the coming years.

According to Ives van Wedbush, the Global Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (EVTOL) could grow aircraft activities into a market chance of $ 30 billion in the following decade.