Technology is capable of amazing things. Currently, several companies are working so that, in the future, aerial drones work as taxis in the main cities of the world. This week, the Chinese electronic vehicle manufacturer Xpeng has carried out a test flight with a ‘flying car‘ in the United Arab Emirates, the company is working to launch the electric aircraft in international markets.
The X2, as the device is called, is a two-seater vertical take-off and landing electric transport (eVTOL) -that is, a sort of large drone- that rises by means of eight propellers, two in each corner of the vehicle.
Monday’s 90-second unmanned test flight in Dubai was described by its manufacturer as an “important foundation for the next generation of flying cars.” “We are making (movements) step by step towards the international market,” said Minguan Qiu, general manager of Xpeng Aeroht, in statements collected by ‘Reuters’. “We first selected the city of Dubai because Dubai is the most innovative city in the world,” he remarked.
Xpeng is not the only company that is working on the development and implementation of this type of device. There are currently several companies that understand that this type of device can become an option in the medium term and function as taxis in cities with heavy traffic; something that would also help the environment.
Also in Spain
Even in Spain there are firms that are betting that this type of solution will become an option in the future. That is the case, for example, of UMILES Nexta company that a few weeks ago showed its own drone, Concept Integrity, during a flight through the French city of Toulouse.
The eVTOL It is capable of moving around cities autonomously, it is designed to carry one person and it can cover urban distances of 15 kilometers in 15 minutes.
«Our goal is to be on the market soon and for this we must define, together with all the companies involved in air mobility, rules, standards and requirements that we all have to meet. These types of initiatives allow us to contemplate all the cases in which security intervenes, among other aspects, ”explained Carlos Poveda, executive director of the Spanish company, in a statement.
Recently, even the National Policeannounced that it had been conducting tests with such a device. Specifically, with a EH216manufactured by the Chinese company EHang, which has the capacity to carry two people inside and is powered by electricity, having the ability to fly at speeds of up to 130 kilometers per hour.
According to the Police, its eVTOL can allow agents to reach “reduced spaces where other types of aircraft such as conventional helicopters cannot access, such as areas contaminated by NRBC agents”: “In addition, R&D studies +I carried out by the National Police open a new range of possibilities in which this type of drone can be used.