On April 7th, the Civil Aviation Administration of China officially granted EHang Intelligent Technology the Production Certificate (PC) for the EH216-S autonomous aerial vehicle system in Huangpu, Guangzhou. This marks a significant milestone in the global eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft) industry, as it is the first production license issued in this field. Following the successful acquisition of the Type Certificate (TC) and Airworthiness Certificate (AC) for the EH216-S, this achievement signifies EHang's pioneering step into large-scale production.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China issued the EH216-S production certificate to EHang Intelligence on the spot. Image provided by interviewee.
It is understood that manned aircraft need to obtain airworthiness certification before they can be put into commercial operation. Airworthiness requires three major credentials: TC, AC, and PC (Production Certificate). This certification indicates that EHang Intelligence has established a batch production quality management system that meets the requirements of China's civil aviation airworthiness regulations and has been approved for continuous and batch production, providing strong assurance for the quality of products produced by EHang Intelligence.
The batch production quality management system of EH216-S covers raw materials, supplier management, production organization, production quality control, aircraft factory testing, and after-sales maintenance, ensuring that every production link is traceable and controllable. This ensures that all parts, components, and systems are traceable and safely controlled, ensuring that each aircraft and its components leaving the factory comply with approved model designs and safety requirements.
EH216-S Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for Passenger Transportation by EHang Intelligent Technology. Photo by Jianfeng Li.
During the process of production license certification, the review team was formed by the South Central Regional Administration of the Civil Aviation Administration of China. They conducted a comprehensive and rigorous document review and on-site verification evaluation of 19 system elements of EHang Intelligent's production capacity and quality management system, including organization management, design data control, personnel capabilities and qualifications, supplier management, manufacturing process control, inspection, and testing. This was carried out in accordance with the airworthiness regulations "Regulations for the Certification of Civil Aviation Products and Components" (CCAR-21-R4) and the airworthiness management procedures "Production Approval and Supervision Procedures" (AP-21-AA-2019-31).
