Low-altitude economy attracts more aero firms

Eyeing China's booming low-altitude mobility sector, a number of companies unveiled their latest cutting-edge products and solutions at the first International Advanced Air Mobility Expo, which kicked off on Wednesday in Shanghai and will run through Saturday.

With participation of nearly 300 exhibitors from around the globe, the event is expected to attract over 50,000 visitors, event organizers said.

A variety of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are on display. For example, Vector5 — the world's first large payload eVTOL aircraft designed by Vision Aero Ltd for emergency medical service and search and rescue — was unveiled at the event.

With a maximum payload of 680 kilograms and takeoff weight of 3,180 kg, the seven-seat eVTOL aircraft developed by the Xi'an, Shaanxi province-based company is equipped with sufficient medical devices and fixation systems for stretchers. Compared with existing medevac helicopters, the eco-friendly aircraft can greatly reduce costs and improve efficiency when dealing with emergency rescue demands.

"We expect to roll out a more cost-effective model compared to traditional helicopters with Vector5, by cutting the purchase cost by about 50 percent, thanks to the complete supply chain in China," said Hu Yiqiang, general manager of the company.

"The low-altitude economy is booming in China, and we see potential market demand for eVTOL aircraft in the medical service sector."

Also eyeing overseas markets, Vision Aeronautics is expanding its layout worldwide in regions such as Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

During the expo, unmanned aircraft designed for logistics and transportation also attracted large crowds. Among them, the "Air Jeep" AI-101 — a super short take-off and landing (SuperSTOL) intelligent aircraft developed by McLean (Shanghai) Intelligent Technology Co Ltd — made its world debut at the expo.

With a take-off and landing distance shorter than 40 meters and a minimum takeoff distance of 7 meters, the large fixed-wing unmanned aircraft is tailored for courier services within 600 kilometers, said the company.

"The number of deliveries soared over 160-fold from 2010 to 2024 in China. Our aircraft can carry 500 kg of goods, and require no general aviation airports or long runways to take off or land. Logistics firms are in urgent need of such aircraft, which has been rushing us forward," said Ma Liqi, co-founder and CEO of McLean.

Big names from overseas are also at the expo. Sky Enterprises Inc from the United States is displaying its amphibious aircraft RC-3 Seabee for the first time in China.

The model can adapt to complex take-off and landing scenarios such as water surfaces, grasslands, snowy fields and sandy areas. Its first version was produced in 1946, and since then, it has been widely applied in over 30 countries in fields such as tourism, transportation, emergency rescue, logistics and express delivery, forest fire fighting and border patrols.

The aircraft has been through comprehensive upgrades to improve its load and endurance performance so as to tap into the Chinese market. Planning to obtain Chinese certificates within 10 months, the company said it is looking to launch a manufacturing base in the country, and deliver its upgraded aircraft around the end of next year.

Celia Chen, CEO of the company, said: "We believe this is the best time for us to enter China as we see the nation's great efforts in promoting the low-altitude economy, which gives us full confidence and solid support. The nation has a well-developed supply chain and advanced artificial intelligence technologies, and we hope to take such advantages to carry the classic aircraft forward."