HK Media’s Sichuan-Chongqing Tour: Eyeing Hong Kong Market, Aerofugia Banks on Independent eVTOL R&D to Establish Asia-Pacific Low-Altitude Hub

Building competitive low-altitude economic ecosphere, promoted by new Policy Address, is making Hong Kong Asia-Pacific innovative application hub. “HK Media’s Sichuan-Chongqing Tour” Hong Kong media visiting group came to Sichuan Wofei Changkong Technology Development Co., Ltd. (Aerofugia), who is working on R&D and commercial operation of global low-altitude smart transportation aircraft.

Wofei Changkong Technology Development Co., Ltd. (Aerofugia). By Bastillepost.

When it comes to the low-altitude economy, eVTOLs and drones are hailed as the dual pillars of its future. eVTOL, which stands for "Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing aircraft," is a new type of aircraft that utilizes electric power for propulsion and possesses vertical take-off and landing capabilities. It does not require runways and combines electric propulsion technology with the demands of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and Urban Air Mobility (UAM). Known for being environmentally friendly, low-noise, and highly efficient, it demonstrates significant potential in areas such as passenger transport, cargo delivery, and medical rescue, making it a crucial vehicle for driving the development of the low-altitude economy.

Wofei Changkong Technology Development Co., Ltd. (Aerofugia). By Bastillepost.

With urban and economic development, ground traffic has become increasingly congested. Aerospace began research on flying cars as early as 2006, initially developing the Transition in the United States, and gradually exploring various solutions towards electric aircraft. The company has experimented with numerous approaches. Hou Yi pointed out that a transformation in transportation is inevitable. Recognizing this major trend,  Aerospace has continuously invested in R&D. It is precisely because of the experience and technological foundation accumulated over years of research and development that they have produced the AE200, a 5-6 seat class tilt-rotor pure electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) manned aircraft product.

In a densely built metropolis like Hong Kong with its numerous skyscrapers, are there any difficulties for eVTOL operations? Hou Yi, Senior Product Manager at Aerospace, stated that it poses no issues whatsoever. Particularly for takeoff and landing within the city, eVTOL vertiports can be constructed on the rooftops of high-rise buildings. Precisely because eVTOLs are capable of vertical takeoff and landing, they do not require a long, gradual climb. They can ascend vertically from a skyscraper rooftop directly to a safe flight altitude and proceed straight to their destination. Therefore, high-rise buildings pose no impact on the flight operations.

Hou Yi, Senior Product Manager at Aerospace. By Bastillepost.

Hou Yi disclosed that the company has already received orders for over 1000 units from both domestic and international clients, primarily involving cultural tourism sectors, financial leasing companies, and business jet operators.

By Bastillepost.

Regarding the current biggest challenges in the development process, Hou Yi pointed out that the first is obtaining the type certificate, which signifies that the aircraft's design safety level has been approved by the authorities. For successful operation, support from infrastructure is also essential, including the construction of vertical take-off and landing airports​​ (vertiports) within cities, along with charging facilities. These require urban planning and promotion efforts from the industry and relevant stakeholders.

By Bastillepost.

Furthermore, how to enhance public confidence in this new mode of transportation is also a key focus for Aerospace. According to market research and face-to-face questionnaires conducted by Aerospace, results show that approximately over 90% of respondents expressed strong interest in this type of aircraft and are willing to try it, indicating high public confidence in its safety. Additionally, as  Aerospace is a company with an aviation background, the development of the AE200 vertical take-off and landing aircraft strictly adhered to various standards and requirements for standard civil aviation products. Therefore, its standards are comparable to, or even more stringent than, those for general aviation helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, etc., ensuring very safe operation of the aircraft.

Speaking about the Hong Kong market, Hou Yi stated that Aerospace actively participates in relevant exhibitions and has noted that Hong Kong has a regulatory sandbox for the low-altitude economy. The company is actively engaging with local participants in Hong Kong, such as the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, for communication and exchange. Hou Yi pointed out that the company is targeting the Hong Kong market because its economic scale and consumption level are well-suited for the operation of such new aircraft.

Hou Yi explained that vertiports could be set up in Hong Kong's city center and connected to major transport hubs, establishing direct low-altitude flight routes to further improve travel efficiency. Additionally, some of Hong Kong's outlying islands are relatively inaccessible, requiring ferry rides and transfers to other ground transport. Once such air travel services become available, residents in these slightly remote island areas will enjoy much greater travel convenience.

Hou Yi mentioned that another application direction in the Hong Kong market is emergency rescue. In traditional emergency rescue, if an ambulance needs to reach remote areas to provide medical assistance, it often requires a significant amount of time. However, by adopting aerial methods—especially with the specialized models for aerial medical rescue that Hou Yi’s team plans to launch in the future—the time required for medical rescue can be greatly reduced, ultimately helping to save more lives.

The SAR Government is pushing forward the development of the low-altitude economy. In the second phase of the "Sandbox X", some companies have applied to pilot manned electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, also known as "air taxis", and are pending for the SAR Government to formulate relevant legislation. In addition, there are also applications to establish an air traffic control system (UTM) to further promote the development of the low-altitude economy.

From left to right: Chairman of Owowww Alan Wan, Head of Engineering Services of Cyberport Dr Eddie Lock, Business Development Director of KC Smart Mobility Newton Ng. Photo by Bastillepost

The current application of drones mainly focuses on inspection and cleaning, for example, using drones to clean the outer walls and inspect the wires and railways. Last year, 38 testing projects were listed in the first phase of the low-altitude economy sandbox, with 32 having been implemented. According to the Civil Aviation Department (CAD)... 20 of the implemented projects are now more mature and low-risk, which are not used in high traffic areas, including the infrastructure examination and walls cleaning, and enter constant actual operation phase.

The next phase involves testing drones cross-border logistics, manned mission and UTM (Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management). The “Sandbox X” project, launched by the SAR Government on December 24 last year, focuses on five key applications including these.

Cyberport provides testing fields for both “Sandbox” and “Sandbox X” projects, Kwoon Chung Bus (00306) has applied for this low-altitude economy Sandbox X project with its eVTOL project.

Newton Ng, Business Development Director of KC Smart Mobility Company, tells Bastillepost that Kwoon Chung has reached cooperation with Mainland drones manufacturer EHang (Nasdaq: EH) to promote eVTOL (Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing) in Hong Kong, which is a new electricity driven vertical aircraft without runway often referred as Air-taxi or Air-car. EHang has completed the first manned flight in Indonesia in the middle of 2025, its flagship product EH216-S also gained multiple permissions from CAAC.

Business Development Director of KC Smart Mobility Newton Ng. Photo by Bastillepost

Newton Ng says that EHang manned aircraft has been tested in the Mainland for many times, but it needed a fixed point test due to Hong Kong’s unique situation like the high building density. “We hope we can bring new technology and new travelling mode via eVTOL, ” says Newton.

When talking about the application of “Sandbox X”, Newton notes that although the drone cannot ride passengers currently, he hopes drones can really complete manned missions in the future to give citizens confidence. He also points out that eVTOL still needs to meet mant requirements in security and commercialization as a new traffic tool, and that details of commercialization, including security examination roles, technicians operation certificate and traffic rules for drones,  should be ruled by laws.

EHang completed its first manned flight in Indonesia last year. Photo from EHang official website.

Owowww creative, a company performing drone shows at Victoria Harbor, is also going to apply for the “Sandbox X” project. Last year, Owowww reached cooperation with Chu Kong Shipping Enterprises to use its Nansha bounded warehouse to develop cross-border logistics. Owowww also successfully developed the stable operation to do large-scale ensemble rises and falls performance on the ship and safe performance of drones carrying fireworks.

Provided by Owowww Creative

As for the “Sandbox X” project that Owowww is applying for, Chairman of Owowww Alan Wan introduces three applied projects including UTM, eVTOL and cross-border logistics. While conventional aircraft require instructions from airport air traffic control towers, the UTM can understand the air traffic control towers of drones and is responsible for managing drone traffic.

Chairman of Owowww Creative Alan Wan. Photo by Bastillepost

Dr Eddie Lock, Head of Engineering Services of Cyberport, which is  the field partner of low-altitude economy “Sandbox X” project, states that the most common problem discovered during the test of first round low-altitude economy “Sandbox” is the lack of a well-developed UTM. “We have spent so much energy managing the drone airport to make sure there is no interference nearby. However, the management will be much more difficult once the drones fly into the sky, ” he says.

Dr Eddie Lock, Head of Engineering Services of Cyberport

“If UTM is well developed, we can make good use of three-dimension space to sharply increase low-altitude economy benefits, which means that multiple drones can fly in one airspace,” says Dr Eddie Lock, “that is why we need to develop UTM in the “Sandbox X” project.”

Cyberport provides suitable drones airport and equipped infrastructures, including  charging and communication systems, for participating companies during the “Sandbox” and “Sandbox X”. According to Eddie, Cyberport has widely cooperated with CAD and Hong Kong Observatory, while CAD is mainly responsible for airspace management during the test, Hong Kong Observatory has the most advanced meteorological monitoring instrument to provide real-time data for participating companies to empower the tests.

Alan Wan from Owowww expresses his hope for the government to accelerate legislation to regulate eVTOL industry. As for the healthy development of the industry, he advises the government to fund an industrial fund, or cooperate with insurance companies to provide insurance service for infrastructure and operation of the industry. “In this way, the company cost can be cut down,” he says.