Is the era of "flying cars" really coming when manned aircraft, known as "air taxis," are recently on sale online?
On March 18th, the world's first domestically developed "Air Taxi" Yihang EH216-S unmanned manned aircraft, which has obtained airworthiness certification, was launched on Taobao with a price tag of 2.39 million yuan.
On the evening of March 20th, this "aerial taxi" made another appearance in the "Make Friends" Taobao live broadcast room, with a full purchase of 1.99 million yuan. According to data, 12 people have already paid a deposit of 39900 yuan for Yihang's "air taxi".
At present, two models have been listed in the store, among which Yihang Intelligent EH216-S is in pre-sale status with a price of 2.39 million yuan; The Yihang Intelligent VT-30 is priced at 9999900 yuan. The VT-30 adopts a composite wing design, with a designed range of 300 kilometers and a designed range of 100 minutes.
According to public information, the EH216-S unmanned manned aircraft can carry two people, with a length of 6.05 meters, a width of 5.73 meters, and a height of 1.93 meters, consisting of 16 propellers. It is worth mentioning that its maximum range for a single flight is 30 kilometers in a straight line in the air, and its maximum flight speed can reach 130 kilometers per hour. It can effectively and flexibly be used in multiple scenarios such as commuting, air emergency, and disaster relief.
Both aircraft are eVTOL, also known as "electric vertical takeoff and landing low altitude aircraft" or "flying cars", which are commonly understood as electric and can take off and land vertically without the need for a runway. They have rich application scenarios in the future air traffic industry.
Recently, the stock price of EH.US has seen a significant increase. On March 19th, the stock price of Yihang Intelligence surged by 15.55%. As of the close of March 20th local time, Yihang Intelligence reported a price of $18.54, an increase of 3.52%, with a market value of $1.12 billion. Yihang Intelligence has accumulated a growth rate of 19% in two trading days.
It is reported that the product will receive the model certificate officially issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China in 2023, becoming the world's first manned unmanned electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft to obtain the model certificate.
On the afternoon of March 18th, a reporter from the Daily Economic News interviewed He Tianxing, Vice President of Yihang Intelligence, via WeChat phone. Regarding the online sales of the world's first unmanned "aerial taxi", He Tianxing said, "Many people are asking whether Yihang has not yet targeted the C-end or the B-end. In fact, our ultimate goal is to provide new low altitude travel services for every ordinary citizen. On a national level platform like Taobao, we hope to popularize the value of the future low altitude economy to consumers. Let everyone understand and understand the future development and application of unmanned aerial vehicles."
He Tianxing said, "In the past few years, Yihang Intelligence has completed the delivery of over 200 orders. This time, the online sales of 'air taxis' are because Taobao is a national level consumer platform. Through online sales, more people can understand and see (eVTOL), and more people will like this new way of life. Only then will more people choose it as a new mode of transportation in the future."
"Secondly, currently we are the only manufacturer in the world that has obtained a manned (eVTOL) airworthiness certificate, and we have products with commercial operation qualifications. Therefore, we have listed them on the platform for both science popularization and sales. Other manufacturers have not yet obtained the certificate, and (temporarily) we can't do it," said He Tianxing.
The so-called "certification" refers to obtaining an airworthiness certificate through airworthiness certification, which is a prerequisite for commercialization. "Actually, everyone is developing, and we are the first to complete airworthiness certification," He Tianxing said.
What are the advantages of eVTOL compared to helicopters? He Tianxing believes that the main advantages are safety, convenient takeoff and landing, green environmental protection, and unmanned driving.
He Tianxing told reporters, "Firstly, our eVTOL adopts the design concept of 'multiple backups' in its core key components. In the event of any component failure during flight, other backups will be replaced to restore it to normal flight conditions. Backups include propellers, motors, flight controls, batteries, and all core components have been backed up. Secondly, traditional helicopters have single engine rotors, and basically lose kinetic energy when one rotor is damaged, and it will fall down. However, we now have 16 propellers, and we also have backup flight controls. We have three sets of flight controls, and one set of flight controls can manage the aircraft. We use three sets of flight controls to manage the aircraft." Even if one flight control has a problem, other flight controls can replace it normally and then resume flight
In addition, He Tianxing also mentioned takeoff and landing. Due to its small size, takeoff and landing are also relatively convenient. In the future, some buildings and a playground can take off and land. Moreover, its eVTOL can be charged using a 380V charging station, which is more convenient than refueling a helicopter.
In addition, traditional helicopters have higher noise levels, while eVTOL is electric and has smaller propellers. "It's just like an electric fan, the small fan has a lower sound, while the big fan has a higher sound," He Tianxing said.
At present, eVTOL (Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Vehicle) manufacturers mainly have three technical routes: multi rotor, composite wing, and tiltrotor. The research and development difficulty of the three increases in order, and their performance in endurance, load capacity, and other aspects varies.
In terms of price, 2.39 million yuan is still an astronomical number for most people. Apart from paying the full amount to buy EH216-S, is it possible to rent it? This is also a concern for many netizens.
"This depends on the level of commercialization of eVTOL. Currently, we are working with the Civil Aviation Administration to establish standards for commercial operation systems. After the commercialization officially begins, we will provide regular services at prices that are acceptable and willing to be consumed by the general public," said He Tianxing.
Choosing to list on Taobao this time, Yihang Intelligence also has its own considerations. He Tianxing said, "The Taobao platform is a national level consumer platform, providing consumers with better air transportation is a development concept that Yihang Intelligence has always adhered to. We also want to promote the application and future development of unmanned aerial vehicles to more consumers by joining the industrial product platform on Taobao, so that more people can understand the low altitude economy. This is not only promotion but also science popularization."
He Tianxing revealed to the Chao News reporter that currently, Yihang Intelligent's production line can achieve an annual production capacity of 600 aircraft. This time, a real-time delivery plan will be generated based on market sales, which can meet the current market sales and delivery. With the continuous promotion of eVTOL commercialization, the increase in deployment of operation points, and the continuous improvement of infrastructure construction, it is believed that a development stage of low altitude travel popularization will soon be ushered in.
Daily Economic News Comprehensive Tide News, Daily Economic News (Reporter: Zhu Chengxiang, Wang Fan), Public Information
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