eHang is set to become the world's first company to get an electric VTOL air taxi type certified and into commercial service, after successfully completing its entire flight test program with China's aviation authority. Oh, and it's autonomous.
It took a little longer than expected, but China appears poised to beat American and European eVTOL efforts to market. eHang's pilotless, no-frills, manned octocopter aircraft have raced through the development and certification process, and should soon be taking paid customers.
How so fast? eHang is certifying in China, where the CAAC (Civil Aviation Administration of China) has loosened the rules, leaving companies trying to meet European and US legislative hurdles, far behind.
In the name of an "innovation mindset," the CAAC intentionally accelerated the pace of certification, immediately clearing a path to autonomous operation that may take EASA and the FAA a decade to allow, and greenlighting the company to fly manned "demonstration" tourist sorties - nearly 10,000 of them, with the public on board, in no less than 20 locations across China - over the last few years.
The basic octocopter layout and relatively small battery in this two-seat machine give it a flight range of just 30 km (18.6 miles), so it'll be much more of a short-range tourist experience and cross-town traffic buster than some competitors that are aiming for 200-mile (322 km) ranges and beyond.
Here's the promo video...