EHang this month expanded its eVTOL development plans in Europe, reaching an agreement with authorities in Spain and Norway for trial operations. However, the pace at which the activities will progress immediately was thrown into question by restrictions on travel and work in both countries, imposed to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.
On March 18, the Chinese company announced a strategic partnership with the Spanish city of Lliria to develop pilot operations for urban air mobility (UAM) services. Two days earlier, EHang announced a similar agreement with the city of Seville in southern Spain.
City officials have committed to working with EHang to develop plans for passenger transportation, air logistics operations (including cargo delivery) and command and control platforms. They will also jointly apply for permission to conduct test flights with EHang’s 216 Autonomous Aerial Vehicle.
Back on March 5, the Civil Aviation Authority of Norway issued an operational flight permit for the two-seater 216 aircraft. This will allow the company to start flight trials with an undisclosed local customer, but it has yet to confirm when they will start. The trials are due to be conducted at Elvenes Airport in the far north of Norway.
EHang sees potential for its eVTOL aircraft to be used to support Norway’s extensive offshore oil and gas industry. It also sees multiple other applications across the country’s long strip of sparsely populated territory, much of it offering free airspace.
It appears that EHang’s plans in Seville could follow a similar approach to that taken in the Chinese city of Guangzhou, where it has been conducting extensive operational trials. During the Covid-19 outbreak, the company has also used its aircraft to deliver supplies to Chinese hospitals.
EHang already has a partnership with the Austrian city of Linz, where its sister company FACC is headquartered.
