Image: The two seat unmanned EHang 216 in action. Credit: YouTube. Ehang.com
An autonomous aerial vehicle, with a capacity of two passengers, successfully conducted a test flight in Klungkung, Bali on Friday (11/26).
The EHang 216 flying car is expected to become a flying taxi, but there is a hitch, the operators are still waiting for permission from the relevant authorities.
President Director of Prestige Image Motorcars, Rudy Salim said the operation of the Ehang 216 as a flying taxi cannot be carried out until permission from the government and related parties is obtained.
“As soon as the permit is issued, we will run it immediately. Again, it depends on the regulator as we have to follow the existing regulations,” said Rudy as quoted by Suara.com.
He said that the EHang 216 will be able to travel to remote areas and can be a solution for land access so that it can increase productivity and support health in Indonesia.
Video above. The Ehang 216 takes off over Bali yesterday.
The vehicle is battery operated with minimal pollution.
“We hope that the EHang 216 can be a pioneer in innovation and implementation of digital-based smart cities,” said Rudy.
He explained that the flying car made by a Chinese company will be controlled by operators from the ground using the internet network.
According to Rudy, with one battery charge, the EHang 216 has the ability of flying 30 kilometers and is able to lift a maximum load of 220 kilograms with a maximum speed of 130 km per hour.
It will be awesome to see this taxi option soon and with luck it will be quiet too. More info about pricing here.