China’s low-altitude economy ready for takeoff but experts call for ground rules

China’s low-altitude economy is entering a critical transition phase.

New regulations, breakthroughs in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, expanding manufacturing capacity and growing market demand have pushed the emerging sector into the spotlight as a potential driver of new quality productive forces.

Yet behind the ambitious trillion-yuan market forecasts and frequent technological milestones lies a fundamental challenge: transforming industrial strength and technological breakthroughs into sustainable commercial operations.

China’s revised Civil Aviation Law, which took effect on July 1, introduced a dedicated chapter on low-altitude economic development, providing a legal foundation for the sector’s expansion.

The new framework establishes classified airspace management for low-altitude zones below 300 meters and replaces some case-by-case approval procedures with more streamlined filing mechanisms for qualified flights.

The regulatory shift is expected to help move the industry from scattered regional trials toward a more standardized development model.

Along with the evolving regulatory environment, China has made notable progress in manned eVTOL commercialization, although most applications remain at an early demonstration stage.

EHang’s EH216-S — a pilotless passenger-carrying aerial vehicle — became the world’s first eVTOL model to obtain type certification, air carrier certification and production certification from Chinese civil aviation authorities.

The aircraft began commercial trials in Hefei, Anhui province, in August, allowing public reservations and flight experiences within designated demonstration zones.

The milestone marked one of the earliest attempts globally to move autonomous passenger aircraft toward commercial operation.

However, such services are still limited to specific parks and tourism routes rather than serving as a widespread urban air-mobility solution for daily commuting.

Another example is Aridge, formerly known as Xpeng Aeroht, which highlights a different challenge facing the industry: strong manufacturing capabilities but incomplete commercialization conditions.

In August, Aridge’s flying car manufacturing base in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, produced its 1,000th set of 800-volt high-voltage electric propulsion units, demonstrating China’s growing ability to manufacture key eVTOL components at scale.

The company’s modular Land Aircraft Carrier has completed a series of tests, including automatic separation, independent flight and docking between its ground vehicle and detachable aircraft cabin.

It has attracted more than 7,000 global pre-orders and purchase intentions from individual consumers, government and enterprise customers, as well as overseas markets.

However, the aircraft has not yet obtained the suitable certificate required for formal manned commercial operations and its planned mass deliveries remain dependent on the completion of airworthiness reviews.

The situation reflects a broader challenge across the industry — technological readiness is advancing faster than regulatory approval and commercial deployment.

Industry forecasts nevertheless point to enormous growth potential.

According to CCID Consulting, China’s low-altitude economy is expected to surpass 1 trillion yuan ($148.4 billion) in market scale in 2026, with the figure projected to reach 3.5 trillion yuan by 2035.

The consulting firm said there were more than 127,000 companies in China involved in low-altitude-related businesses by the end of June, covering areas ranging from aircraft manufacturing and airspace management to operations and technical services.

Industry participants, however, cautioned that the sector remains in an early development stage.

While China has identified promising growth areas, large-scale commercialization is still constrained by airspace management, digital supervision systems, infrastructure development and business model innovation, said participants at the 2026 China Entrepreneur Future Star Annual Forum held in Guangzhou in July.

Executives from aircraft manufacturers, intelligent solution providers and industrial service companies also discussed the opportunities and challenges facing the market at the annual event.

Compared with passenger eVTOL services, agricultural, logistics and industrial applications are expected to achieve commercialization sooner, they said.

“Agricultural drone operations currently account for the largest share of our civilian business, with mature and large-scale applications already established,” said Meng Yuehua, director and deputy general manager of Gifore, a subsidiary of United Aircraft that specializes in drone R&D, production and service.

United Aircraft’s products are also used in emergency rescue, low-altitude logistics and power industry services.

For logistics applications, United Aircraft has developed a product portfolio covering different payload capacities.

Lightweight drones carrying about 5 kilograms are mainly used for urban patrols and inspections, while 10 kg-class models can support short-distance delivery services in urban areas.

Meng said United Aircraft has also accumulated operational experience in medical supply delivery, including drone transportation of medical materials in Shenzhen, Guangdong, and county-level healthcare logistics services in cities such as Dongtai, Jiangsu province.

Beyond logistics, industrial inspection has emerged as one of the most commercially mature applications of low-altitude technology.

Wang Haibin, chairman and CEO of Skysys, a company that focuses on drone products and services, said low-altitude applications can be divided into three categories: data collection, material transportation and passenger mobility.

At present, data-driven inspection services represent the most mature commercial scenario, while logistics applications are still expanding rapidly.

Inspection of power infrastructure has become a major driver of drone adoption, he said.

China’s expanding wind and solar power facilities are creating growing demand for efficient maintenance and monitoring solutions.

Equipped with visible-light and infrared sensors, drones can quickly detect equipment faults, potential fire risks and abnormal operating conditions at distributed photovoltaic sites that generate electricity at or near where it will be used.

The technology is also being applied in industrial parks, municipal facilities and high-temperature equipment inspections, reducing reliance on traditional manual operations.

Skysys has developed an integrated system combining aerial inspection with ground-based robotic operations.

The company’s drone-deployed robotic equipment can perform tasks including photovoltaic panel cleaning, dust removal, deicing and snow removal.

Such systems can carry out around 100 maintenance cycles annually and improve power generation efficiency by about 10 percent, according to Wang.

“The low-altitude economy is closely connected with embodied intelligence,” he said.

Future competition, Wang added, will not depend only on aircraft hardware, but on integrated capabilities combining aerial sensing, autonomous decision-making and precise execution.

Hu Yongchao, vice-president of Beidou Fuxi, a technology company focusing on low-altitude traffic management and intelligent networking, said digital infrastructure will become a key foundation for the sector.

“The low-altitude economy cannot develop without a powerful background management system and digital brain,” Hu said.

The company has developed low-altitude intelligent supervision platforms for nearly 30 major cities, providing digital management of flight applications, monitoring and traceability.

Hu pointed out that the rapid growth of drones has created new challenges for traditional aviation management systems.

While China has just over 7,000 traditional civil aviation and general aviation manned aircraft, the number of active drones in a major city can exceed 10,000.

To address this imbalance, Beidou Fuxi has developed a three-dimensional grid airspace management model, dividing urban low-altitude areas into standardized units and enabling more precise flight planning, monitoring and control.

“Developing airspace resources is similar to urban land development. It requires top-level planning and supporting infrastructure,” Hu said.

He emphasized that safety supervision and industrial development should advance together.

“Loose supervision may create safety risks, while overly rigid restrictions could limit innovation,” Hu said.

Shenzhen provides a glimpse of how low-altitude logistics could develop in large cities.

Hu said the city handles about 12.5 million express delivery orders every day, creating different levels of logistics demand.

While around 10 million routine low-value deliveries are better suited to traditional ground transportation, about 2.5 million time-sensitive orders, such as same-day and hourly deliveries, could potentially benefit from drone-based transportation.

These high-value logistics demands are concentrated in areas such as Shenzhen’s Nanshan technology hub, Futian financial district and Luohu commercial center, offering potential opportunities for small and medium-sized logistics drones.

Hu said large-scale commercialization of low-altitude logistics would require three key foundations.

First, cities need intelligent networked management systems capable of monitoring and scheduling flights in real time.

Second, supporting infrastructure, including vertiports and takeoff and landing facilities, must be established across urban and suburban areas.

Third, communication, navigation and safety monitoring systems need to be widely deployed to ensure that flights remain traceable and controllable.

The shortage of such supporting infrastructure remains one of the biggest obstacles preventing the industry from reaching its full potential.

From a global perspective, China’s low-altitude economy has distinct advantages when dealing with challenges shared by the rest of the world.

European and US markets have deeper experience in general aviation and air traffic management, and are advancing eVTOL certification standards and urban air mobility pilot programs.

China’s advantages lie in its complete manufacturing supply chain, strong policy coordination and ability to test emerging technologies through large-scale industrial applications.

At the same time, the global industry faces common hurdles, including high equipment and operating costs, concerns over noise and safety, and insufficient urban infrastructure.

So far, no country has achieved large-scale profitable commercial operations of manned eVTOL urban transportation. Advanced air mobility remains largely in the stage of pilot projects and scenario exploration worldwide.

Analysts said China’s low-altitude economy has entered a new stage driven by technological progress, manufacturing expansion and scenario exploration.

But its next breakthrough will depend on whether regulation, infrastructure and business models can evolve at the same pace, they added.

Contact the writers at lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn