The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has formally accepted the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) applications of EHang Holdings, starting the review process to grant a business license and operational qualifications for pilotless passenger-carrying aerial vehicles or passenger drones. The CAAC has established a specialized review team to move forward the subsequent review process. The applications were jointly submitted by Guangdong EHang General Aviation Co, EHang’s wholly-owned subsidiary, and Hefei Heyi Aviation Co, its joint venture company in Hefei, Anhui province. As the world’s first certificate for pilotless passenger-carrying electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, the acceptance will help pave the way for the establishment of the world’s first commercial operating standards for passenger-carrying eVTOLs and lay a solid foundation for the commercial operation of EHang’s EH216-S craft. EHang’s partners in Guangzhou and Shenzhen in Guangdong province, Taiyuan in Shanxi province and Wuxi in Jiangsu province, are also actively preparing applications of the certificates, with an aim to accelerate the launching of commercial operations of the EH216-S and low-altitude economy demonstration projects in local cities.
The AOC certification for the EH216-S pilotless passenger-carrying aerial vehicle cannot directly follow the existing standards in the civil aviation field, but requires innovation and improvement based on current regulations to establish a new and applicable standard. Leveraging its extensive operational data and practical experience, EHang has been actively collaborating with the CAAC to develop EH216-S operational standards, which will provide a reference basis for the world’s first commercial operation regulatory system for pilotless passenger-carrying eVTOLs. In May, technical requirements for eVTOL aircraft landing sites, primarily drafted and initiated by EHang, were released.
As China’s low-altitude economy is entering a new phase of rapid growth, the CAAC will prioritize five key areas, including the construction of unmanned aerial vehicle demonstration zones, the development of airworthiness and air operator certificates, planning and construction of airport facilities, and the establishment of a low-altitude flight service support system. EHang has already obtained the world’s first type certification, production certificate and standard airworthiness certificate for a pilotless passenger-carrying eVTOL, the China Daily reports.
