EHang Granted Production Certificate from CAAC, Clearing Path for Mass Production of the EH-216S Unmanned eVTOL

(Guangzhou, China) Urban air mobility (UAM) technology company EHang Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: EH) announced yesterday (April 7) that it has obtained the Production Certificate (PC) for its EH216-S passenger-carrying pilotless electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicle from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC); the certificate is the first PC that has been granted in the global eVTOL industry.

The EH-216S unmanned eVTOL in flight, courtesy of EHang.

“Following the groundbreaking obtaining of the Type Certificate (“TC”) and the Standard Airworthiness Certificate (“AC”) for the EH216-S, this remarkable achievement is another significant leap towards mass production for the eVTOL aircraft and the following commercial operations,” reads yesterday’s press release from EHang.

The PC granting ceremony was held yesterday at the International Conference Center of Huangpu District in Guangzhou yesterday.

Per Ehang, its securing of the PC certificate indicates that the company has established a mass production quality management system that meets the CAAC’s airworthiness regulatory requirements, and that EHang has been authorized for continued mass production. The certificate is also a “robust assurance for the product quality produced by EHang,” according to the company.

EHang’s mass production quality management system encompasses rawmaterials, supplier management, production organization, production quality control, aircraft pre-delivery test, after-sales repair and maintenance, among other things.

During the PC certification process, the review team of the Central-South Regional Administration of the CAAC conducted adocument review and on-site verification and validation from multiple perspectives of quality, production, testing and after-sales, based upon the Regulations on Certification of Civil Aviation Products and Parts (CCAR-21-R4), and the Production Approval and Supervision Procedures (AP-21-AA-2023-31), per EHang.

Photo from the Production Certificate (PC)-granting ceremony yesterday (April 7th), when the CAAC issued the PC for the EH2160S to EHang, courtesy of EHang.

“In the past six months, EHang’s EH216-S has secured three groundbreaking achievements in airworthiness certification: the world’s first TC, PC and standard AC for the passenger-carrying UAV,” said Mr. Heyong Lin, Director of the Airworthiness Division of the Central-South Regional Administration of the CAAC. “EHang epitomizes a pioneering enterprise of new business model in the Central and Southern region, representing new quality productive forces. The Central and Southern Regional Administration of the CAAC is dedicated to offering steadfast support to EHang, bolstering the high-quality development of the low-altitude economy.”

Mr. Huazhi Hu, Founder, Chairman and CEO of EHang, commented: “The issuance of the PC is pivotal for the EH216-S as it opens the door to mass production, and a crucial step for our advancement towards commercial operations. As of today, the EH216-S has secured the TC, PC, and Standard AC from the CAAC. All the notable accomplishments relied on the collaboration and tireless efforts of the CAAC’s expert team and EHang’s team, and reflected our collective innovation, wisdom and expertise in aircraft design, manufacturing, quality management and other fields. With the PC as the starting point, we are poised to gradually expand production and delivery to meet escalating market demands.