Flying Taxi Company Partners for Extreme Fast Battery Charging

Chinese eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) vehicle maker EHang and fast battery charging company Greater Bay Technology (GBT) agreed to work together to develop very high-speed battery charging systems for flying vehicles.

EHang and GBT plan to jointly develop eVTOL power cells, batteries, packs, charging piles and energy storage systems that comply with the airworthiness standards of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

The stated goal is to create the world's first Ultra-Fast Charging (UFC)/eXtreme Fast Charging (XFC) battery system for EHang’s electric aerial vehicle (EAV).

EAV battery charging times are expected to take fewer than 10 minutes to charge from 30% to 80%, according to EHang.

“We are pleased to join hands with GBT, a strong partner in the field of XFC batteries, and jointly create an XFC era for eVTOL aircraft,” said Huazhi Hu, founder, chairman and CEO of EHang. “EHang’s EH216-S is in a critical stage entering into commercial operations with all the type certificates, production certificate and standard airworthiness certificate issued by the CAAC. Our cooperation will promote the establishment of UFC ecology for eVTOL aircraft, reduce the charging time of eVTOL, and strengthen the foundation for low-cost, large-scale and high-efficiency commercial operations in the low-altitude economy.”

Related:Flying Taxi Startup Cleared for Mass Production; Pilotless Travel

At the DriftX mobility event in Abu Dhabi last week, EHang signed a deal with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) to further drive eVTOL development in the UAE region.

EHang recently received governmental approval to mass produce its passenger-carrying, pilotless vehicles.

EHang Holdings received the Production Certificate (PC) for its EHE16-S EAV from the CAAC.

The EAV previously received a standard airworthiness certificate (AC) from the CACC, the first of its kind globally for an EAV.

The latest approval certificate validates that EHang has a mass production quality management system that meets the CAAC's airworthiness regulatory requirements.

The company is now authorized for mass production.

The system to make the EH216-S includes raw materials, supplier management, production organization, production quality control, pre-delivery test, after-sales repair and maintenance. The new approval includes guidelines for all steps in the production procedure.

EHang recently conducted a demonstration flight of its pilotless flying vehicle in Latin America, flying the EAV at the Reserva Conchal Resort in Costa Rica.

The flight was held in front of national authorities and media to help promote advanced air mobility (AAM) in the region.

Related:Flying Taxi Takes Demo Flight in Costa Rica; Pilotless

The flight demonstration, intended to highlight the EAV suitability for aerial tourism, was organized by Bluenest by Globalvia, a vertiport networks manager, and a subsidiary of a private airport operator.

EHang recently flew a group of 12 EAVs together in China.

In a video, the 12 flying vehicles took off together from an airfield in Hefei, China, on what appeared to be a snowy day.

The video showed the vehicles all lifting straight up at the same time, flying in different groups, flying over the airfield and then landing in a row at the same time.

The $410,00 EHang vehicle is approved for flying passengers.

The long-range goal of the flying vehicles industry is to have EAVs evolve from piloted vehicles, such as the coming air taxis, to aerial vehicles that fly automatically, with no crew onboard. 

While some EAV makers such as Wisk in the U.S. are planning to start this way in the future, it is not in the most recent Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) electric aerial vehicle planning documents.

EHang has been active in marketing its pilotless vehicles globally with several of its vehicles on display at DriftX in Abu Dhabi last week.

EHang extended its operations to the United Arab Emirates including the sale of up to 100 of its EAVs.

Related:Air Taxis Fly in Packs in China; No Pilots

The EAV maker joined the Smart and Autonomous Vehicle Industries Cluster in Abu Dhabi and formed a partnership with Wings Logistics Hub, a passenger eVTOL subsidiary of Technology Holding Company.

The cluster, led by the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development and the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, aims to establish Abu Dhabi as a hub for smart and autonomous vehicles. 

As part of this new agreement, EHhang plans to work with Wings Logistics to obtain local certification of its EAV in the UAE.