EHang 216 AAV set for serial production in 2020

According to an article on the Asia Times website, the EHang 216 Autonomous Aerial Vehicle (AAV) will enter serial production in 2020.

Serial production means that a production-conforming design has been fixed and that all craft will be built to that standard.

The 216 AAV has been jointly developed by China’s EHang, and FACC, an Austria-based systems manufacturer.

The EHang 216 is thought to be an onward development from the EHang 184. in 2016 an online video surfaced showing the EHang 184 conducting test flights.

The 184 model takes its name from the architecture of the flying vehicle. It can carry one passenger, has eight rotors and four arms that hold the rotors.

The EHang 216 model seems to break with the naming convention, although it can carry two passengers. It made its first public appearance in Qatar in 2018 when it undertook a series of unmanned and manned demonstration flights.

Early in 2019 the aircraft undertook more demonstration flights, but this time they were in Austria, where co-manufacturer FACC is based.

According to FACC, it has already received ‘several thousand’ pre-orders for the 216, at a cost of $336,000 each.