Two grand launch events were held at the Jiulong Lake Park in Guangzhou and the Luogang Central Park in Hefei to debut commercial flight demonstrations with EHang's certified EH216-S aircraft, which recently obtained a standard airworthiness certificate from China's CAA. A number of government officials and local citizens joined the first group of passengers invited to take a ride and experience the scenery from a new perspective above city landmarks.

EHang chairman and CEO Huazhi Hu says: "We are excited that EHang continues trailblazing in the global emerging UAM industry. From the world's first-of-its-kind pilotless passenger-carrying aerial vehicle system type certificate, our first delivery with a standard airworthiness certificate to these debut commercial flight demonstrations with certified EH216-S aircraft in Guangzhou and Hefei, we are making steady progress towards commercial operations, as planned. This rapid advancement has been bolstered by the unwavering support of our partners, regulators and national policies focused on developing China's low-altitude economy, especially in UAM. We are confident that our concerted efforts will ensure a smooth launch of commercial operations for EH216-S in these pioneering cities in the near future."

Guangzhou and Hefei are two additional demonstration partner cities selected for UAM operations to establish a leading presence in the emerging low-altitude economy industry.

The first EH216-S has been successfully delivered to ETON, an intelligent aviation technology subsidiary of Guangzhou Development District Communications Investment Group, and has been deployed at the Jiulong Lake operational site. More operation sites and flight routes for aerial sightseeing and logistics are under development in Huangpu district as well.

In addition, a Guangzhou Development District Low-Altitude Industry Venture Capital Fund is to be set up with the target fund size of $1.4 billion.

Hefei's Luogang Central Park has been designated by the Hefei government as an eVTOL aircraft operation site for its Full-Space Unmanned System Integrated Application Demonstration Project. Formerly Hefei Luogang International airport, it is the world's largest urban central park covering 12.7 square kilometres. It is home to natural landscapes, themed gardens, playgrounds, concert halls, restaurants, apartments and hotels, and has attracted 300,000 daily visitors during the holidays. Numerous potential applications and massive demands for aerial sightseeing, tourism and regional shuttle services make it an ideal commercial operation site for the EH216-S.

The Hefei government plans to expand its aerial sightseeing flight routes and services to more scenic spots, and intends to facilitate the purchase of at least 100 units of EHang's vehicles and/or provide financing support, amounting up to a total of $100 million.

The low-altitude economy is one of the strategic emerging industries identified during the annual Central Economic Work Conference recently held in China, and has garnered strong support from many local governments. It has been recognised as a promising domain with strong potential to become a substantial driver of national economic growth. Notably, Guangzhou and Hefei have been positioned as pivotal gateways, and favourable policies with subsidies have been launched to promote the related enterprises, industrial clusters, infrastructure, R&D, production, applications, operations, services and certifications.

The Guangzhou Huangpu district government is to provide up to $4.2 million for eligible low-altitude industrial projects, and is accelerating the layout of low-altitude economy industrial clusters. It sees itself as the 'City in the Sky. Executive vice mayor Jie Chen comments: "As a local brand in Guangzhou and the world's leading intelligent autonomous aerial vehicle technology company, EHang always adheres to innovation leadership and constantly explores the boundaries of the sky. In October this year, EHang successfully obtained the type certificate for its unmanned aerial vehicle, marking a global milestone in the development of the low-altitude economy. I believe that this debut commercial flight demonstration will greatly boost confidence of the entire industry and put its development onto the fast track."

The Hefei government is proposing to build a low-altitude economy cluster, a testing and airworthiness certification base, a flight service and management platform and to set up commercial flight routes for aerial tourism and logistics. Executive vice mayor Quan Zhang says: "The low-altitude economy is an emerging industry as well as a new engine for economic growth. In recent years, Hefei has firmly grasped the national policy guidance, industrial development direction and technological revolution trend, and has successfully ranked in the first tier in this new sector. EHang is definitely an industry-leading company with many 'first' and 'unique' achievements in the fields of pilotless passenger-carrying flights and eVTOL. EHang's debut commercial flight demonstrations mark a new chapter in the development history of the pilotless passenger-carrying aerial vehicle and the low-altitude economy. We will join hands with key enterprises like EHang to focus on application scenarios, industrial cooperation and business model innovation, and strive to build Hefei as a low-altitude city of international influence."