The EHang 216L can carry a payload of 200kg – about 440 pounds – which EHang says is, as far as they know, the largest payload for multi-rotor AAVs.
“The EHang 216L is another good application of its world-leading AAV technology platform in addressing real market needs such as logistics,” says an EHang press release. EHang has been agile in finding applications for their signature passenger drones that can be implemented today, before infrastructure and regulation to support urban air mobility (UAM) is widely available. In parallel with developing ground-breaking passenger drone applications in China, such as aerial sightseeing tours, they’re developing applications including firefighting, ambulance drones, search and rescue and cargo delivery.
“…the EHang 216L opens up more commercial opportunities for the company in various urban and rural short-to-medium-haul aerial logistics use cases that require frequent and point-to-point flight tasks,” says the press release. The EHang 216L could be used by the energy industry to resupply offshore oil rigs autonomously, for logistics in international ports, or for a wide variety of other applications.
“According to Frost & Sullivan, the urban air mobility (“UAM”) global logistics market could reach US$46 billion by 2023 (an estimated CAGR of 740%),” says the EHang press release. “China is projected to be the largest regional market in the world in 2023, accounting for 45% of the global logistics UAM market.”
To watch the demo video of EHang 216L, please visit: https://youtu.be/IpjEIm_d30w
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.
TWITTER:@spaldingbarker
Subscribe to DroneLife here.