Chinese drone maker EHang to build vertiport in Italy

Chinese drone maker EHang recently announced that it will build a vertiport in Italy, its first in the EU, to serve passenger-grade autonomous aerial vehicles (AAVs).

The vertiport is expected to be operational in 2022, and the company hopes to use it to build a complete manned air traffic service.

The vertiport, able to accommodate three EHang 216 aircraft simultaneously, is equipped with a waiting room, a café, a 200-square-meter panoramic restaurant, and connecting lift.

The take-off-and-landing platform will be set on the roof terrace. The vertiport is built with non-slip photovoltaic panels that can generate over 300 KW of electric power per day.

The platform will have fully independent plug-and-play charging infrastructures that can be used to recharge EHang’s AAVs.

When completed, the terminal will provide an intra-city connection to high-speed transportation such as high-speed rail. Passengers who arrived will be able to take the EHang aircraft to their respective destinations within the city quickly.