Chinese firm EHang launches UAM center for unmanned electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft in Europe. Photo: Courtesy of EHang

EHang Holdings, a Chinese urban air mobility (UAM) platform company, announced on Wednesday the inauguration of its first European UAM Center for unmanned electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft in Spain.

The center, located in the Lleida-Alguaire International Airport of Spain, represents the first of its kind in Europe for eVTOL aircraft, which has set a benchmark globally for the effective integration of eVTOL aircraft operation with airport infrastructure, air traffic management systems, operational procedures and other information technologies.

"The establishment of EHang's European UAM center marks an important step forward in the company's international development. Through this world-class UAM center, EHang expects to manifest strong commitment with the deployment of UAM in Europe with the aim to share validated technology and operational experience with our partners around the world in the future," said Hu Huazhi, founder and chairman of EHang.

The company said in a note sent to the Global Times that it will deploy EH216-S, its self-developed passenger-carrying unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system, at the UAM center in Europe.

By integrating vast flight experience through operating in various locations worldwide, information can be leveraged to the development of technological solutions, regulations, processes and procedures for safe and efficient integration of eVTOL aircraft into European airspace in the future, the company said.

Ehang, based in Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong Province, went public in the US in 2019. The company's autonomous aerial vehicles had already been put into commercial use around the globe.

In October, EH216-S obtained the type certificate (TC) officially issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), the Chinese aviation regulator. The move signified that the new model design complies with CAAC's safety standards and airworthiness requirements, and that the EH216-S is qualified to conduct passenger-carrying UAV commercial operations.

Industry observers said the nod from CAAC offered the Chinese firm a potential edge to compete with its peers in the US and Europe which are racing to meet certification requirement.

China is now at the forefront in developing eVTOL aircraft.

On October 10, a report jointly issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the CAAC proposed that, by 2025, eVTOL aircraft could be operated in pilot schemes, while by 2035, new types of unmanned, electrified smart aviation vehicles could achieve large-scale commercial application.

Global Times