EHang’s EH216-S Completes China’s First Cross-Province eVTOL Flight

(Guangzhou, China) EHang Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: EH) announced today (Dec. 31) that its EH216-series pilotless electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft successfully completed a point-to-point flight across the Qiongzhou Strait, marking the first cross-province flight by a human-carrying eVTOL in China, according to the company.

Image of EHang's EH216-series eVTOL crossing the Qiongzhou Strait, courtesy of EHang.

Image of EHang's EH216-series eVTOL crossing the Qiongzhou Strait, courtesy of EHang.

The flight departed from from Nanhai Mingzhu Island in Haikou City, Hainan Province, and arrived at Xuwen Port in Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province, completing the 22-kilometer journey 18 minutes, according to today’s press release from EHang.

The flight time associated with the Qiongzhou flight represents a significant reduction from the typical 60–90 minutes ferry crossing, improving travel efficiency by approximately 70–80%, according to EHang.

Per EHang, the EH216-series aircraft that successfully crossed the Qiongzhou Strait is equipped with a high-energy solid-state battery co-developed by EHang and its partner Inx Energy – thus, the flight demonstrates the stable performance of this battery in complex environments such as over-water eVTOL operations, providing strong technical support for diverse applications including cross-strait transportation, island tourism, maritime emergency response, and island logistics.

“[The flight] also paves the way for effective inter-provincial connectivity and extends to longer-range flights covering multiple cities within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, enabling inter-city passenger and cargo transport and accelerating the commercialization of the low-altitude economy,” reads today’s press release from EHang.

Additionally, per EHang, the EH216-series flight establishes a potential low-altitude corridor between Hainan and Guangdong, which “will further help EHang solidify its development foundation across both provinces, foster international exchange, and cultivate a low-altitude application ecosystem, thereby injecting new momentum into Hainan’s low-altitude economy and the cultivation of new quality productive forces for the Free Trade Port.”

"EHang’s successful pilotless eVTOL flight across the Qiongzhou Strait is a vivid example of innovative development in Hainan’s low-altitude economy,” said Mr. Xiao Faxuan, Chairman of Hainan Airport Group, in his address at the ‘Soaring Skyward’ event series in the Hainan Free Trade Port, where guests witnesses the Qiongzhou flight. “We will seize the opportunity presented by the Free Trade Port’s special customs operations to build a pioneer zone for low-altitude economy applications, empowering industrial development through practical applications and making the low-altitude economy a new growth engine for the Free Trade Port. We will also deepen collaboration between Hainan Province and Guangdong Province, integrate policy and industrial resources across both provinces, facilitate smooth cross-province air mobility, and unite powerful synergies for low-altitude economy development, thereby infusing greater vitality into the Hainan Free Trade Port."

Wang Zhao, Chief Operating Officer of EHang, said, "The successful crossing of the Qiongzhou Strait by our EH216-series pilotless eVTOL validates its adaptability and the efficiency gains it brings in complex environments like over-water routes. This achievement is also a significant result of our collaboration with partners to comprehensively enhance core safety performance and jointly build a diverse application ecosystem. Coinciding with the historic opportunity of the Hainan Free Trade Port’s special customs operations, the low-altitude economy—a key emerging sector for the Port—is facing promising growth prospects.