On November 18th, it was revealed at the 2024 International Electric Aviation (Kunshan) Forum that the Central Air Management Commission will soon launch eVTOL (Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing) pilot projects in six cities. According to media interviews, the six pilot cities have been preliminarily identified as Hefei, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Chengdu, and Chongqing. The pilot document has relevant plans for flight routes and regions, and authorizes some local governments for airspace below 600 meters, which means that relevant local governments have to bear more management responsibilities. Developing low altitude economy is an important strategic deployment made by the central government. The development of low altitude economy cannot be separated from various aircraft. In addition to traditional helicopters, China's unmanned aerial vehicle industry has already emerged in the low altitude economy development track. As a rising star, the new technology product eVTOL may provide new growth functions for the development of low altitude economy. EVTOL, like drones, has similar technical specifications and application scenarios. They are powered by electricity and can take off and land vertically without the need for specialized infrastructure such as airports. Therefore, they do not occupy a large amount of urban land and can take off and land in existing urban areas. This advantage makes these two types of aircraft more applicable, and their transportation efficiency will greatly enhance the momentum of low altitude economic development. The difference between the two is that eVTOL also needs to undertake personnel transportation tasks, so its technical requirements are higher. This also indicates that accelerating the flow of people between cities is an important lever for developing the low altitude economy, and it is also a key link in promoting the implementation of the future urban air traffic system concept. And these aircraft are usually used for urban economic development, with relatively low true altitude (the vertical height of the aircraft above the ground) in the airspace. Therefore, developing low altitude economy and relaxing airspace management are more important aspects beyond technological products. Airspace can be considered as a type of spatial resource. It is undeniable that the utilization rate of China's airspace is relatively low, and there is a huge reserve of resources available for development and utilization in the airspace. According to the latest National Airspace Basic Classification Method released in December 2023, China's airspace is divided into seven categories, of which two categories are non controlled airspace. One category generally refers to airspace below a true altitude of 300 meters (flight plans still need to be reported), and the other category generally refers to airspace below a true altitude of 120 meters. The Central Air Traffic Management Commission has piloted eVTOL in six cities and authorized some local governments to manage airspace below 600 meters. This is a major benefit for the development of low altitude economy and an effective measure for China's airspace management reform. To develop the low altitude economy, aircraft need to fly, test, and operate more. Conditional delegation of airspace management authority can help eVTOL related enterprises improve the efficiency of product research and development, testing, and production. As a new technological product and also the technological high ground of future urban air traffic, eVTOL is still a blank paper waiting to be written by countries around the world. China has achieved a breakthrough in the automotive industry by relying on new energy vehicles, and eVTOL, which is closely related to new energy vehicles, is a key choice for future urban air traffic aircraft. The development and production of eVTOL is not only conducive to the development of low altitude economy, but also to China's mastery of technological discourse in the field of low altitude aircraft. Some of the six pilot cities mentioned above have already gained some experience in eVTOL production. Shenzhen conducted eVTOL tourism flight tests this month, flying from Dameisha Seaside Flight Base to Xiaomeisha Seaside Flight Base. After the official opening of this route, tourists can take eVTOL from Dameisha and fly over the sea in just five minutes to Xiaomeisha, enjoying the magnificent mountain and sea scenery of Yantian. According to information from this year's China Airshow, the International Advanced Technology Application Promotion Center (Hefei) Low altitude Economic Battery Energy Research Institute has achieved significant technological breakthroughs in incubating high-energy solid-state batteries. A certain eVTOL model equipped with this battery successfully completed a single uninterrupted flight test, reaching 48 minutes and 10 seconds, and the endurance time can be significantly increased by 60% to 90%. All of these demonstrate the technological capabilities and strength of the eVTOL related industries in the pilot cities. The authorization of the pilot by the Central Air Traffic Management Commission will undoubtedly promote the further development of eVTOL technology in China, achieve new results in airspace management reform, and ultimately help promote the high-quality development of the low altitude economy. (New Society)
Edit：Luo yu Responsible editor：Wang xiao jing
Source：GMW.cn
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