In Hefei, capital of Anhui province, passengers will soon be able to board the EH216-S, a two-seater electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft with 16 carbon-fiber propellers. “This aircraft is fully autonomous. It is designed for short-haul city transport, sightseeing, logistics emergency response. Soon, passengers will be able to book rides above the city’s skyline,” said Zhang Yuhui, Operations Director at Hefei Heyi Aviation Co, which has developed the EH216-S. This is not science fiction. In March, Heyi became one of the first companies in China to be granted a civil aviation permit for operating manned passenger drones, which Zhang called “a passport to the sky”.
China is doubling down on efforts to develop the low-altitude economy, and is likely to include it in the 15th Five Year Plan (2026-30) with the aim to build a “network in the sky”, said Gao Yuanyang, Director of the General Aviation Industry Research Center at Beihang University. Anhui province is quietly emerging as a front-runner in China’s strategic shift from being a manufacturing stronghold to an aerospace powerhouse. While Beijing or Shanghai often grab headlines, Anhui is also building a full industry chain – from urban drone flights to rockets bound for orbit.
During an inspection tour by the Chinese top leadership, Anhui in October 2024 was urged to build globally competitive advanced manufacturing clusters and preemptively invest in strategic industries, including aerospace, smart aviation and high-end manufacturing. Across the province, the flying taxi is already operational in Hefei and blood delivery drones connect 20 hospitals within 20 minutes in the city. Tourism flights between Hefei, Wuhu, and Huangshan enable sightseers to enjoy Anhui’s ancient landscapes. In other cities of Anhui province, drones also carry meals and medicines.
More than 300 local companies in Hefei alone participate in the low-altitude economy in the province. Over 200 drone corridors serve logistics, medical transport, infrastructure inspection and even food delivery in the city. “Low-altitude airspace is heating up. We’re building an entire ecosystem, from R&D through operations, to make Hefei a true ‘sky city’,” said Cheng Yu, Deputy Director of the Hefei Development and Reform Commission. In March 2024, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) approved Anhui’s low-altitude expansion: 30 new airspace zones and 27 drone corridors, both record single-year gains that underpin the province’s ambition.
Two hours north, in Bengbu, another city in Anhui, aerospace aspirations take flight. Bengbu Commercial Aerospace Industrial Park of China, spanning over 260 hectares, now hosts 17 groundbreaking projects. Inside a workshop of Bengbu Lingkong Technology Co, technicians work on a rocket’s heat-resistant shield. “We’ve developed a modified low-density quartz – phenolic thermal protection material,” said Chen Shilin, Lingkong’s production head. “It can withstand up to 2,100°C, equivalent to fitting the rocket with thermal armor.” Nearby at the Jiuzhou Yunjian Anhui intelligent manufacturing base, a subsidiary of a national high-tech enterprise integrating design and development, assembly and testing of liquid rocket engines, engineers manufacture and test a liquid-methane rocket engine at a new launch test site. These engines can restart mid-flight and are key for reusable designs. With 3D printing, the company is able to cut production time from six months to about 23 days.
Bengbu Commercial Aerospace Industrial Park of China is the physical embodiment of Anhui’s strategy, to bring together innovators, materials producers, engine makers, and launch-service providers under one roof. By 2025, the province expects over 20 local firms to form a seamless value chain from materials to mission architecture. “Our park is our launchpad to then stars,” says Hu Haibo, Deputy Director of Bengbu’s Yuhui district government. “We’re targeting a CNY20 billion industrial cluster in commercial aerospace within a few years.” Private capital is fueling the momentum, too. Several leading investment funds have anchored the local innovation ecosystem in the commercial aerospace sector.
On a broader perspective, China sees aerospace – not just defense but also civil applications – as a key future industry. In March 2024, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) launched a general aviation innovation and application roadmap to promote commercial aviation. Nationwide, the number of drone companies surged by 145 in 2024, over 1.1 million unmanned aviation vehicle licenses were issued, and the low-altitude economy is projected to hit CNY1.5 trillion by 2025. Commercial space, on the other hand, propelled by satellite-internet and cargo services, may reach CNY2.5 trillion, the China Daily reports.
