Xpeng Aero HT unveiled the Land Aircraft Carrier, a “modular flying car” at CES 2025, which is a minivan with a foldable eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) aircraft in the luggage compartment. Potential clients include thrill-seekers and emergency responders. The number of pre-orders has already exceeded 3,000, with the first deliveries of the Land Aircraft Carrier scheduled for 2026.
Image source: Xpeng AT
Land Aircraft Carrier does not require an expensive hangar or paid space at the airfield for storage. It allows the owner to simply drive to the takeoff and landing site, start the process of detaching and deploying the aircraft, and then take it off for flight. After landing, the eVTOL will be folded and stowed in the luggage compartment of the minivan.
The ground module is a futuristic six-wheeled van. According to Xpeng marketers, “this is what a lunar rover for Earth could look like.” Even with the eVTOL loaded, there’s plenty of room inside for four passengers.
The ground module ensures eVTOL charging while driving and parking. According to Xpeng, the vehicle uses an 800-volt power platform with silicon carbide batteries, which allows it to achieve a combined autonomy of the ground and air modules of up to 1,000 km.
The six-rotor ultra-light eVTOL has a panoramic carbon fiber cabin. The manufacturer claims an “excessive” level of safety for all systems, especially noting the “automatic response to rotor failure.” The company is now testing 200 aircraft at once for reliability in adverse weather conditions.
The device is controlled using a single joystick. It can also fly fully autonomously, according to the manufacturer, “thanks to intelligent flight assistance that includes one-touch takeoff, automatic route planning, real-time airspace monitoring and visual guidance assist for landing.”
Xpeng Aero HT is the aerospace division of Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Xpeng. Xpeng Vice Chairman and President Brian Gu said the Land Aircraft Carrier has already received its type certificate and completed its first public demonstration flight with a crew. In addition to type certification, you will also need to obtain a mass production certificate and then an airworthiness certificate. The owner will need a certificate to operate the eVTOL.
The Aero HT manufacturing facility in Guangzhou is already under construction and should begin production by the end of this year. In 2024, Xpeng Aero HT attracted $150 million in investments for this project. According to an Aero HT representative, when reaching its designed capacity, the plant will be able to produce 10,000 Land Aircraft Carrier vehicles. The modular flying car will first be available in China, and then the manufacturer plans to bring it to international markets.
According to the company, the Land Aircraft Carrier modular flying car is just the first stage of far-reaching plans. The second stage is the creation of a high-speed tiltrotor flying car with a long flight range for use in an “integrated urban air mobility network.” The third is the development of a flying car for “seamless, door-to-door, integrated ground-air urban transportation systems.”
Note that eVTOL manufacturers are quite attractive to investors. Thus, Beta Technologies raised $1.15 billion, Joby — $2.8 billion, and Archer — more than $3 billion.
If you notice an error, select it with the mouse and press CTRL+ENTER.
Source: 3dnews.ru
