"Low Altitude Era" may arrive in 5 years

In the near future, we may experience a new way of transportation. "Air taxis" are no longer a concept in science fiction novels, but are about to become a reality in our daily lives.

"In 5 years, we will see flying cars shining like new energy vehicles do now." He Zhengdao, founder of Donggu Intelligence, told Wall Street News that in the next five years, with technological progress, policy support, and a mature industry chain, electric flying cars will gradually achieve commercial operation. He Zhengdao is a member of the COMAC R&D Center in China and has been involved in the overall technical integration work of ARJ21 and C919.

Looking back in history, in the 1940s, Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company, predicted that "flying cars will appear sooner or later."

In 2019, EHang Intelligent successfully listed on NASDAQ, becoming the first stock in the global eVTOL industry. At the same time, the European EASA and the American FAA began to modify the relevant regulatory systems, paving the way for the commercialization of flying cars.

By 2021, the heat of the flying car industry continued to rise, with companies like Joby Aviation and Archer Aviation going public, with valuations reaching tens of billions of dollars. In October of the same year, Xiaopeng Huitian received a $500 million financing.

According to data from CCID Consulting, the scale of China's eVTOL industry will reach 980 million yuan in 2023, is expected to reach 3.2 billion yuan in 2024, and is projected to reach 9.5 billion yuan by 2026.

"The commercialization of low-altitude aircraft will allow us to fly from Shanghai to Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, and other places in less than an hour. This will not only greatly alleviate urban traffic congestion, but also activate surrounding cultural and tourism resources, promote regional economic development." He Zhengdao stated that the low-altitude economy will drive a new economic engine with an output value of nearly 10 trillion yuan.

The application prospects of eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) in low-altitude tourism are broad. Galaxy Securities report predicts that the total demand for eVTOL in the next 5 years could exceed tens of thousands of units, with a total market size of 32 billion yuan. The application scenarios of the low-altitude economy are constantly expanding, from agricultural and forestry protection, power inspection, urban firefighting, medical rescue, to aerial tours, private flights, etc., which will change people's production and lifestyle.

He Zhengdao's entrepreneurial original intention stems from responding to the country's call to promote the low-altitude economy. He used his more than 20 years of experience in aviation design, R&D, manufacturing, and operation to promote China's economy from two-dimensional ground to three-dimensional low-altitude expansion, building a three-dimensional transportation, logistics, emergency, and security system. In 2015, after completing the mission of large aircraft for COMAC, He Zhengdao founded Donggu Intelligence and led the team to develop more than ten types of intelligent unmanned equipment for air and ground.

Donggu Intelligence will exhibit two innovative products at this international technology import and export fair: the DGI-EX6 "Hongguan" long-endurance vertical take-off and landing compound wing drone and the DGI-Ocean Eye "Ocean Eye" light industrial underwater robot It is reported that DGI-Ocean Eye underwater robot won the 2023 German Red Dot Design Award, becoming the first domestic multi-functional underwater robot. This robot has been used in various applications such as underwater live broadcasting, diving teaching assistance, underwater surveys, aquaculture monitoring, and fishing assistance.

On the other hand, the DGI-EX6 drone, with its over 1000km endurance and retractable vertical take-off and landing design, has become the first domestic drone to pass the "Three Highs" test, namely high safety, high environmental adaptability, and high cost-effectiveness. He Zhengdao told Wall Street News that since the development of "Hongguan" in 2019, it has safely flown over a million kilometers, can operate stably at high altitudes and under extreme weather conditions, with flight and maintenance costs per kilometer only 65% of industrial drones on the market. It is currently widely used in public safety, national resources, emergency firefighting, infrastructure inspection, and other fields.

According to the CCID Consulting report "Research on the Development of Low-Altitude Economy in China (2024)", the scale of China's low-altitude economy exceeded 500 billion yuan in 2023, and is expected to exceed 1 trillion yuan by 2026. As of February 2024, there are over 57,000 companies in the low-altitude economy sector in China, with nearly 21,000 newly established companies in the past five years, accounting for nearly 80% of the companies established in the past decade. Data from the IDEA Research Institute shows that by 2025, the comprehensive contribution of the low-altitude economy to China's national economy will reach 3-5 trillion yuan.

"We are optimistic about the low-altitude economy. The main obstacle faced by manned aircraft at present is not a technical issue, but a regulatory issue. However, China is already ahead of foreign countries in terms of technology openness and tolerance," He Zhengdao believes, "The prudent development approach should be to start with logistics transportation, and then gradually promote manned flights in suburban areas before moving to city centers."

When low-altitude aircraft fill the sky, and "flying at will" becomes a reality, the era of the low-altitude economy will truly arrive