On January 1 2023, Science and Technology Daily (central government mainstream news media) reported that on December 28, the 2022 Double Innovation Special Action of Guangzhou High-tech Industrial Development Zone Science and Technology City Park “Entering the leading enterprises in Huangpu District” was held at EHang Intelligent Equipment (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as EHang).

Xue Peng, vice president of EHang, gave an in-depth interpretation of fully autonomous flight, grid network based on the concept of Internet of Things, inter-city traffic and intra-city traffic, etc. He also introduced the EH216 passenger-level autopilot aircraft suitable for low-altitude and short-distance air transport within cities and the VT-30 electric composite wing passenger-level autopilot aircraft suitable for inter-city long-range air transport.

EHang’s business includes passenger transportation, logistics transportation, smart city management, aerial media, etc. EHang’s passenger-grade autonomous aircraft has completed more than 30,000 flight demonstrations around the world, covering 12 countries on three continents in Asia, Europe and North America.

“As far as urban air mobility or autonomous aircraft is concerned, China is well-deservedly number one in terms of technological advancement and industrial development!” Xue Peng is very proud. As a member of “Made in China”, Xue Peng said that EHang is an innovator of autonomous aerial vehicles for urban air mobility, and will continue to focus on technological innovation and gain recognition and support from more countries and regions around the world. He also revealed that with the development of technology in the future, more diversified models will be developed and put into use, and there will be a greater explosion point in the field of urban air mobility autonomous flight.

What is the development trend of drones in the future? Xue Peng said that before 2016, the entire industry mainly focused on the research and development of drones for photo shooting; and later, became more and more inclined to subdivide fields, such as the development of police drones, long-endurance drones, and multi-rotor drones, as well as research on how to apply them to agricultural plant protection, emergency rescue, etc.

He said that this raises a question: how do enterprises and the government industrialize these ideas, and what role do they play in this process? “If the gap between creativity and industrialization can be bridged, more new models, new industries, and new developments will surely be stimulated in the future.”

“EHang has proposed the ‘100 Line Plan’ in 2021, planning to open 100 air traffic routes, conduct test flights in specific scenarios and areas, and explore the development from isolated airspace to integrated airspace. We are very confident in the development of the urban air mobility industry.” he said.