EHang has achieved a significant milestone for EH216-S autonomous eVTOL aircraft type certification (TC) by successfully completing all of the planned tests and flights in the last phase of demonstration and verification of compliance. It has also completed the definitive TC Flight Test by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), with unwavering endeavors throughout the past 31 months.
After finishing the remaining process, the Chinese company expects to receive a type certificate very soon for its EH216-S from the CAAC.
EHang confirmed that it has already been making some pre-certification deliveries in China, with 16 of the two-seat vehicles delivered during the first half of 2023. The CAAC has permitted these aircraft to be deployed on a trial basis for testing, training, and demonstration purposes.
Since the time when CAAC officially accepted the EH216-S TC application in January 2021, EHang’s unyielding efforts have spanned over 30 months. Throughout this journey, the company has overcome various challenges and finally successfully completed all of the substantive tasks.
Ranging from the battery, environment, material, strength, electronics, software, and data link to the ground control station, it has sufficiently proved that EH216-S meets the safety standards and airworthiness requirements by the CAAC through scientific approaches, multi-angle demonstrations, rigorous testing, and continuous optimizations.
EH216-S sticks to three fundamental technological principles: full redundancy, autonomous flying, and cluster management. According to the company, it stands out as the world’s first TC program for unmanned eVTOL.
“We’ve made remarkable progress in our pursuit of long-term growth. Notably, we are thrilled to announce that we have successfully completed all the planned tests for EH216-S type certification. This achievement marks a significant unprecedented milestone in the global emerging eVTOL industry, underscoring our unwavering dedication and pioneering advantages. Additionally, this sets the stage for us to secure the type certificate soon and proceed with our endeavors to initiate commercial operations,” Huazhi Hu, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of EHang, said in the official release. “I believe the remaining procedures will be finished very soon before the official authorization of the type certificate. It will pave the way for our commercial operations in the next stage.”
