Chinese province looking to ‘flying taxis’ to give tourist industry wings
- Shanxi is investing in electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles and drone deliveries as part of a national effort to boost the ‘low altitude economy’
- It is hoped the sector could provide an economic boost of US$690 billion, with tourism a major part of the drive
A Chinese province is buying “flying taxis” and subsidising drone development as part of a nationwide effort to boost innovation in the emerging industry and inject much-needed momentum into its economy.
Shanxi, until now has been best known as a major coal-mining area in northern China, but is now looking to diversify from its industrial-led economy and develop new emerging technology.
The investment comes as China is exploring commercial opportunities in airspace of up to 1,000 metres (3,280ft).
This could include flying taxis, also known as electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, businesses using both drones or crewed aircraft for package delivery, drone light shows and rapid-response emergency services.
This “low-altitude economy” was first designated a “strategic emerging industry” at the central economic work conference in December, a gathering that sets China’s national economic agenda.
The sector is estimated to contribute between 3 trillion yuan and 5 trillion yuan (US$414 billion-US$690 billion) to the national economy by 2025, according to a white paper published by the International Digital Economy Academy in Shenzhen last year.
01:38
‘Flying taxi’: Drone rises to the occasion with first test flight in real-life air traffic
On Friday eVTOL maker EHang said Taiyuan Xishan Ecological Tourism Investment Construction had placed a 113 million yuan order to buy 50 fully autonomous, two-passenger EH216-S drones.
Taiyuan Xishan, which is owned by the municipal government of Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi, also signed a deal to buy another 450 of the drones over the following two years to boost tourism and associated industries in the province, according to EHang, which is also listed in the US.