Chinese drone could carries a single passenger

Ehang, a Chinese drone manufacturer company has recently launched the world's first drone that capable of carrying one passenger. Its presence is expected to help achieve the dream of the aviation industry for the short-medium distance automatically.

As reported by Xinhuanet on Thursday, January 7, 2015, Ehang 184 using electric power was debutted in the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2016 in Las Vegas. The drone is capable of carrying a single passenger weighing up to 100 kg for the 23 minutes flight on the surface of the sea at a speed of 100 km per hour.

Ehang 184, the world's first Autonomous Aerial Vehicle debutted at the CES 2016 in Las Vegas. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1Rv10Hu)

After established flight plan, the passenger just need to send two commands: "take off" and "landing", each controlled one-click on the tablet attached to it. It does not require runways, because the drone take off and landing vertically.

Left side view of Ehang 184, the world's first Autonomous Aerial Vehicle. (Picture from: http://nbcnews.to/1OPz9D2)

"Because the 184 has an automatic navigation, it is possible to operate 24/7. In real-time, the passenger doesn't need a license to control the drone. They just sit back and let the drone take over," said the representative of the Guangzhou-based company said in a statement.

Furthermore he said the first realization of automatic flight signifies a major turning point not only for the transportation industry, but also for other fields such as shipping, medical care and retail. For safety, Ehang said, the drone has built reinforcements for all flight systems, so that in the unlikely event that the component that failed, can seamlessly take over.

If there is any damage during the flight, for example, because of a bird, the drone will automatically determine whether it needs to land to ensure the safety of passenger. In an emergency, passengers can also choose to stop flying and just floating in the air with just one click.

Ehang Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer, Derrick Xiong told Xinhua that his company plans to sell drones later this year with a price of US. $200,000 to $300,000, or about Rp.2 billion to Rp.4 billions per unit. And as a first step may only be used in designated places such as tourist areas.

"But in the end, we hope that people can use it as a means of transportation for short-to-medium-away flight," he concluded. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | XINHUANET | GIZMAG]

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