Flying drone taxi maker EHang receives another regulatory green light in China (updated)
13/10/2023 10:23
(Adds detail, background)
Oct 13 (Reuters) - Chinese drone maker EHang Holdings
EH.O gained safety approval certification from China's
aviation authority, bringing its unmanned passenger copters one
step closer to commercial use, the Guangzhou-based company
announced on Friday.
The 'type certification' from the Civil Aviation
Administration of China (CAAC) is for EHang's 216-S model, a
16-rotor drone that can carry two passengers at speeds of 130
kilometres an hour at a max range of 30 kilometres.
An individual vehicle costs 2.16 million yuan ($296,000).
It is the first such electronic vertical take off and
landing (eVTOL) vehicle to receive type certification from the
(CAAC), EHang said, though the company still needs an operation
permit before commercial activities can begin.
Shares of the NASDAQ-listed company have risen 80% so far
this year to $17.10, though they remain far below their December
2020 peak of $124.09, before a damning report from an investment
research firm caused a precipitous drop in value.
EHang said it is still exploring whether to work with
tourism operator customers as either a product provider or also
as a service provider, also operating the vehicles.
Well-established aviation and automotive industry players
like Boeing (BA.N), Embraer, Airbus (AIR.PA), United Airlines ,
Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) and Stellantis (STLA.MI) are among
the companies pouring money into the nascent eVTOL sector.
But regulatory requirements have been one of the thorniest
issues for the sector given strict safety requirements,
especially for operating in dense urban environments, as well as
noise and pollution concerns.
In China, AutoFlight and XPeng Inc 9868.HK are also
developing vehicles in the eVTOL space.
(Reporting by David Kirton; editing by David Evans & Simon
Cameron-Moore)
((David.Kirton@thomsonreuters.com;))