In a Shenzhen park, amid skyscrapers, Polish tourist Karolina Trzciańska and her friends ordered milk tea and lemon tea by phone just to try the experience. About 30 minutes later, the drinks were delivered by a drone buzzing through the drizzle. “It’s the first time I’ve seen this, it’s so cool to have food delivered by drone,” she said.
Such services are growing rapidly thanks to government support, although the “low-altitude economy ” – aviation activities below 1,000 meters such as flying taxis, delivery drones or eVTOL aircraft – still faces obstacles such as strict airspace controls and battery limitations.
In 2023, airspace operations below 1,000 meters generated 506 billion yuan ($70 billion) in revenue, accounting for 0.4% of China's economy. That figure is expected to rise to 3.5 trillion yuan ($490 billion) by 2035, according to Zhang Xiaolan, a researcher at the State Information Center.
An eVTOL aircraft takes to the sky at a port in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China. (Source: Ng Han Guan)
Accelerating the development of flying cars
According to reports by the Chinese Academy of Sciences , Peking University and other institutions, Guangdong Province is leading in low-level economic development, followed by Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
Last October, Guangdong announced plans to build flight service stations and airports, and support local coupons for low-cost travel .
Shenzhen has offered a 15 million yuan ($2.1 million) prize to companies that gain certification to operate passenger eVTOL aircraft – electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles – among other incentives.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China has granted EHang a license to provide commercial passenger services using unmanned eVTOL aircraft, which can reach speeds of 130 km/h and fly up to 30 km.
EHang has yet to launch commercial flights, but Vice President He Tianxing said the company will start with a sightseeing service. It has built landing pads in 20 cities in the past two years and hopes to eventually have a citywide network, using the rooftops of shopping malls, schools and parks as terminals.
“It cannot be just a research product or an engineer's toy,” he said.
EHang's EH216-S passenger drone helicopter has been approved for mass production. (Source: EHang)
Technological and safety challenges
eVTOL aircraft currently face major limitations in battery life, with a flight range of only 20–30 minutes before needing to be recharged. At around $100,000 for a single-seat aircraft, this remains a major barrier to commercialization.
Last September, two XPENG eVTOL aircraft collided during a training exercise, causing one to burst into flames upon landing. While there were no casualties, the incident highlighted the safety risks that remain. Nevertheless, XPENG has invested more than $600 million, introduced a “Land-Based Aircraft Carrier” model, and said it has received more than 7,000 orders worldwide.
While China leads the way in drone technology, policy constraints—particularly airspace control—make its domestic market less attractive. Less than a third of its low-altitude airspace is usable for general aviation, and it has only a tenth the number of registered airports as the United States.
Policymakers are trying to solve the problem, pledging to simplify approval procedures and amend civil aviation laws to promote civilian operations. Experts predict commercialization could begin around 2030, initially for tourism and industry.
China has an advantage in its ability to bring government, business and universities together towards a common goal, according to Chen Wen-hua, director of the Low-Altitude Economy Research Centre at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. However, the speed of adoption will depend on technology, safety and public acceptance. “The future of the low-altitude economy is bright,” he said, “but the road to it can be thorny.”
Source: https://vtcnews.vn/nhung-con-gio-nguoc-thach-thuc-taxi-bay-trung-quoc-cat-canh-ar989245.html
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