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Chinese flying taxi maker EHang sells autonomous passenger drone for US$332,000 on Taobao as nation’s low-altitude economy takes off

  • EHang’s EH216-S electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle will be available in overseas markets at a suggested price of US$410,000 from April 1
  • The EH216-S, which was first announced in February 2018, has reportedly completed over 42,000 successful test flights in more than 14 countries

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Aircraft maker EHang’s EH216-S autonomous electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle will be available in overseas markets from April 1, 2024. Photo: EHang
Ben Jiangin Beijing
Chinese flying taxi maker EHang is selling its EH216-S electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle on Alibaba Group Holding’s Taobao marketplace, weeks before the Nasdaq-listed company makes the autonomous passenger-carrying aircraft available in overseas markets.
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Based in Guangzhou, capital of southern Guangdong province, EHang has put its EH216-S for sale at a unit price of 2.39 million yuan (US$332,000) on e-commerce giant Alibaba’s primary domestic retail platform. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

In February, EHang announced that the EH216-S would be sold at a suggested retail price of US$410,000 outside the mainland from April 1.

The ambitious domestic and international marketing campaigns show EHang’s confidence in generating strong market demand, months after its self-developed EH216-S became the world’s first recipient of a Type Certificate and Standard Airworthiness Certificate for pilotless eVTOLs. Those certifications were issued last October and December, respectively, by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

A screenshot of EHang’s EH216-S electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle that is up for sale on Alibaba Group Holding’s Taobao marketplace. Photo: Handout
A screenshot of EHang’s EH216-S electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle that is up for sale on Alibaba Group Holding’s Taobao marketplace. Photo: Handout

“This significant achievement has had a profound impact on our business, as it has sparked a surge in demand for our remarkable EH216-S,” EHang founder, chairman and chief executive Hu Huazhi said last Friday, when the company released its latest financial results.

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