On May 23rd, it was revealed by Zeng Yuqun, the Chairman of Contemporary Amperex Technology, at the BEYOND International Science and Technology Innovation Expo held in Macau on May 22nd, that the company is dedicated to collaborative development in the field of electric aircraft.
He pointed out that CATL is starting from small aircraft and gradually developing up to 8.8-ton aircraft, and has begun test flights of 4-ton aircraft.
However, to meet commercial standards, aircraft weighing over 8 tons are required. CATL will continue to strive for this goal, with plans to introduce relevant applications between 2027 and 2028.
On the same day, the China Civil Airports Association released the group standard "Technical Requirements for Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Aircraft (eVTOL) Takeoff and Landing Sites" at the 5th China Airport Development Conference.
This is China's first technical specification for eVTOL takeoff and landing sites, covering 11 chapters that provide detailed explanations of the physical characteristics, obstacle limitations, site selection, structural design, and specialized facilities and equipment for eVTOL takeoff and landing sites.
Several automotive companies have already invested in this field.
For example, Xpeng's flying car company, Xpeng Heavens, announced in March that its flying car, the "Xpeng Heavens Land Carrier" with the flying body (codenamed: X3-F), has had its Type Certificate (TC) application accepted by the Civil Aviation Administration of China's Central and Southern Region, indicating that this model is about to enter the airworthiness certification phase.
In addition, Geely Holding Group's new aviation brand, Volocopter, has also made progress. Its self-developed product, the AE200, has completed the first stage of airworthiness technical verification flight and has entered a new stage of compliance plan development and approval.
With these technological breakthroughs and policy support, the commercial application of electric aircraft and flying cars is gradually becoming a reality.
