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Flying cars are the next big thing in urban mobility

Are you ready to float to your destination?

Your drone has nothing on the XPeng AeroHT. PHOTO FROM XPENG

If you read Popular Mechanics back in the ’80s, a popular topic was the flying car. If a car could fly, one could liberate himself from road-bound gridlock and quickly get to his destination, The Jetsons-style. If you’re a child of the ’80s like I am, flying cars and robots were things one hoped to live long enough to see in the future. Well, guess what? It’s 2025. Robots have been a part of various industries for some time now, AI is developing at a rapid pace, and cars may soon get airborne.

For this, China has taken the lead with at least three promising concepts. The first is the XPeng AeroHT, a “land aircraft carrier” that mates a one-person eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing), six-rotor helicopter with a six-wheel mothership. A subsidiary of Chinese EV manufacturer XPeng Motors, AeroHT was founded in 2013 and only three years later had its first successful prototype flight. With the advancements in battery, AI, and drone technology, AeroHT debuted its eVOTL Flying Car at the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show in North America.

Last year, it also got regulatory acceptance for type certification of the flying car’s air module. It secured $150 million in funding in August, and two months later broke ground for its first manufacturing base. In November, the first manned flight was conducted at the China Airshow in Zhuhai, Guangdong, China, with its founder Deli Zhao at the controls.

Advances in battery technology, flight control software, and composites materials have made this possible. PHOTO FROM XPENG

Capable of both autonomous and manual flight, it’s unclear exactly how far or how long you could stay airborne, though the combined range of the mothership and the hexacopter is claimed to be 1,000km thanks to an 800V high-voltage silicon-carbide extended-range platform. Acting as the flying module’s supercharger, the mothership can fully recharge the latter while driving or parked for up to six flights. Already taking preorders at less than $300,000 per unit, deliveries are set to begin in 2026. With plant capacity of up to 10,000 a year, the XPeng AeroHT could revolutionize personal low-altitude transport the way DJI now owns the civilian drone market.

Flying cars will soon be the next status symbol of the wealthy. PHOTO FROM GAC

Then on December 18, the GAC Group launched its new flying car brand, Govy. Featuring a composite-wing flying car called the AirJet, it’s designed for low-altitude mobility. The fixed-wing design uses carbon fiber for 90% of the fuselage, and is powered by a proprietary electric drive system. The AirJet is claimed to have a 250km/h top speed and a range of more than 200km. A rapid recharging system gets it ready to fly in only 30 minutes. As solid state battery technology becomes available, the range may even reach 400km.

The Govy AirJet has what it calls “1+1+X” seating along with an autonomous flight system and a starlight roof dubbed “Pixel Galaxy” so passengers can feel like they’re in space. The AirJet has redundant power and control systems, real-time monitoring from its ‘base’ operator, and obstacle detection. Just like a drone, except a lot bigger.

The Govy AirJet’s 1+1+X seating configuration helps to streamline the fuselage. PHOTO FROM GAC GOVY

In line with the AirJet, GAC is also planning a Robo Air Taxi system. For short distances within 20km, they’re proposing the Govy AirCar (another concept), while farther distances will be covered by the AirJet. With GAC aiming for airworthiness certification this year, production and preorders will follow shortly. It plans to hold demonstration operations by as early as 2027 in two to three Greater Bay Area cities. That would mean flying air taxis will be in cities like Hong Kong, Macau, and those in the Guangdong Province in just two years.

The EHang 216 is already in low-rate production. PHOTO FROM EHANG

Finally, Chongqing Changan Automobile (better known as just Changan) signed a partnership with EHang Holdings Limited in late December 2024. With a goal of collaborating on research and development, manufacturing, sales, and operation of flying cars including eVTOL aircraft, it’s yet another development in what is rapidly gaining interest in what is projected to be a huge industry in the near future: the low-altitude economy.

According to Huarong Zhu, chairman of Changan Automobile, “over the next five years, Changan Automobile plans to invest more than 20 billion yuan in the low-altitude economy sector to accelerate the development of the flying car industry. Over the next decade, we will invest more than 100 billion yuan to explore integrated mobility solutions across land, sea, and air.”

A verti-port for the EHang 216 functions as both landing pad and charging station. PHOTO FROM EHANG

EHang’s autonomous aerial vehicle, the 216, performed its first passenger-carrying flight as early as August 2019 in Changchun. Successive demonstration flights in various countries such as Japan and Korea have further demonstrated its capabilities. Its predecessor, the EHang 184, first flew in 2016. Thousands of flights were conducted to test its survivability under adverse conditions before the rollout of the 216.

The two-seater AAV (autonomous air vehicle) uses eight sets of coaxial propellers powered by brushless DC motors and a 12-cell battery system. With a top speed of 130km/h, a 30km range, and a maximum takeoff weight of 620kg, it is initially being marketed to tour operators and transportation, logistics, and medical providers. It is already in low-rate production.

With Changan bringing its deep pockets to the table, expect the next revolution of urban transportation to take to the air.



Andy Leuterio

Andy is both an avid cyclist and a car enthusiast who has finally made the shift to motorcycles. You've probably seen him on his bicycle or motorbike overtaking your crawling car. He is the author of the ‘Quickshift’ column.



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