[March 15, CNS]The five-seater eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle) “Sheng Shilong” developed by a Chinese company recently took off from Shekou Yusen’s home port in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, and took off for about 20 minutes. After the flight, it landed at Jiuzhou Port in Zhuhai. The distance that would take 2.5 to 3 hours to travel by vehicle on the ground has been reduced to approximately 20 minutes by air. This marks the world’s first successful intercity eVTOL demonstration flight.

eVTOLs, also known as “air taxis,” can operate unmanned and do not require airports or runways. It can take off and land vertically like a helicopter and switch to fixed-wing flight mode mid-air.

This technology aims to enable point-to-point movement within cities and between metropolitan areas, and is expected to become an important means of air travel in the future, creating a new huge market. It seems like it will happen.

The “Central Economic Work Conference,” an important economic meeting held by the Chinese Communist Party and government in 2023, has decided on a policy to strategically develop the “low-altitude economy” as an industry along with the bio-industry and the space industry. According to a white paper, the low-altitude economy is expected to have an annual impact of 3 trillion yuan (approximately 62 trillion yen) to 5 trillion yuan (approximately 103 trillion yen) on the Chinese economy by 2025.

Research is also being conducted on the use of eVTOL, which is more convenient and faster than conventional high-speed rail and air transportation, for transportation between large cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Various departments of the Chinese government have announced the “Guidelines for the Development of Environmentally Friendly Aviation Industry (2023-2035),” which positions eVTOL in the three-dimensional transportation network and aims to build a safe, convenient, and environmentally friendly urban air transportation system. I’m aiming for it.

At the local level, Guangdong Province’s medium- to long-term plan includes expanding and strengthening the drone industry, with a focus on Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Zhuhai. Research is also progressing in places such as Shanghai, and it seems likely that the day when cities in China will be connected by eVTOL and other technologies will be near. (c)CNS-Guangming News/JCM/AFPBB News