EHang Autonomous Megadrone Carries Passengers Around China
EHang successfully flew its driverless 184 megadrone around Chinese skies in first-ever test flights.
Two years after EHang first revealed what it calls the world's first "Autonomous Aerial Vehicle" at CES Las Vegas, the company released a video footage showing its test flights flying at 80 mph (130 km/h) and even carrying passengers.
The company said it has already performed "thousands of test flights" in various weather conditions — like fog, heat, during the night, and even amid a Category 7 typhoon gale-force winds — in the last four years.
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The company says the quadcopter has been tested in both single and double seater versions.
According to reports, other test flights include a vertical climb of 984 feet (300 meters), a weight test where the megadrone had to carry over 500 pounds (230 kilograms), a routed flight that covered 9.3 miles (15 kilometers), as well as a high-speed cruise that went as fast as 80.7 mph (130km/h).
This footage, however, is the first evidence that EHang has really been making progress with the megadrone.
"What we're doing isn't an extreme sport, so the safety of each passenger always comes first," said EHang founder and CEO Huazhi Hu in an official statement. "Now that we've successfully tested EHang 184, I'm really excited to see what the future holds for us in terms of air mobility."
As the vehicle is driverless, the passenger is required to punch in his destination on a touchscreen located in front of the passenger seat. After that, the passenger could just sit and relax as the drone automatically flies to the destination.
The company hopes to one day use these 184 megadrones as a sort of air taxi in dense urban areas. For EHang, the first step is to demonstrate the quadcaptor at Dubai's World Government Summit, which is happening later this month. It is yet unknown how soon EHang hopes to launch the driverless air taxi to the public.
