The first autonomous electric air taxi has been certified

"China's aviation authority has awarded the world's first certification to an autonomous electric air taxi (eVTOL).

 

The Chinese aviation authority CAAC has issued a safety and navigability certificate, a typical certificate, for the ERH216-S pilotless flying object, the manufacturer of this object, the Chinese startup EHang, told AFP. This is the world's first unmanned electric air taxi with vertical take-off and landing eVTOL - emphasized the manufacturer.

 

The CAAC document indicates that the facility meets navigability requirements and has features ensuring safe flights with people on board. "This unit will be subjected to operational tests and after meeting the requirements, it will be approved for commercial operation," the office added. This is the end of science fiction, said the daily La Tribune.

 

The founder and head of EHang, Hu Huazhi, was obviously pleased. "We hope to be the first in the world to commercially use eVTOL with automatic pilot," he told AFP. He founded his company in 2014 in Guangzhou, and in 2019 he introduced it to the Nasdaq American stock exchange."