GUANGZHOU, China, Sept. 30, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EHang Holdings Limited (Nasdaq: EH) (“EHang” or the “Company”), the world's leading autonomous aerial vehicle (“AAV”) technology platform company, announced the latest updates of its passenger-grade AAV EH216-S Type Certification (“TC”) process. The Project Specific Certification Plan has been officially approved by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (“CAAC”). At present, various specified review subjects have been confirmed, including performance and flight, structural strength, design and configuration, ground control station, airborne human-computer interaction, totality, continued airworthiness, etc., and activities for demonstration and verification of compliance are being prepared. Furthermore, multiple positive results have been achieved on the specific algorithms based on aerodynamics, test flights for the overload ratio boundary, etc. Based on more than 30,000 safe trial flights of EH216-S that have been accumulated, it is planned by the Company to conduct further supplementary test activities and test flights for verification from October this year.

EHang has established a regular cooperative work mechanism with the EH216-S AAV TC Review Panel organized by the CAAC after it formally adopted the Special Conditions for the EH216-S AAV in February 2022. Relevant national institutions, the aviation authority and the aviation industry in China have paid great attention and provided guidance and support to significantly enhance, deepen and accelerate the EH216-S TC process.

EH216-S is a world-leading passenger-grade autonomous electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle. Compared with traditional aircraft, EH216-S is innovative and revolutionary in its structure, configurations, operation modes and flight circumstances. Existing standards in the traditional civil aviation field cannot be directly applicable in the EH216-S TC process and new standards need to be formulated with innovations based on current policies, regulations, standards and experience. To date, there hasn’t yet been any case of an autonomous eVTOL aircraft having obtained the Type Certificate in the world, which would make the EH216-S TC project the world’s first of its type.

As China’s first passenger-grade AAV company, EHang has been actively preparing for the airworthiness certification and was approved by the CAAC as China’s first passenger-grade AAV airworthiness certification pilot enterprise in 2018. In February 2022, the CAAC officially issued the Special Conditions for the EH216-S AAV, which provides the compliance basis and safety standards for EH216-S AAVs. So far, EH216-S AAVs have completed more than 30,000 trial flights including passenger-carrying ones and test flights in extreme environments like high altitudes, typhoons, deserts and heavy fog. The accumulated data, experience and safe records have been compiled to support demonstration and verification of compliance, and an appropriate amount of test flight subjects will be further supplemented to accelerate the completion of demonstration and verification of compliance.

Huazhi Hu, Founder, Chairman and CEO of EHang, commented, "EHang has always been committed to bold innovation, careful analysis and prudent verification, and contributing our experience and expertise to formulating relevant industry standards and norms, as well as leading the development of the global eVTOL industry. Completing the airworthiness certification process is a necessary and critical step to further validate the product safety. We are fully confident to obtain the EH216-S Type Certificate as we have basically done the most arduous work by now. We will make continued efforts to accelerate all the remaining processes in the upcoming months in order to obtain the EH216-S Type Certificate as soon as possible.”

About EHang
EHang (Nasdaq: EH) is the world's leading autonomous aerial vehicle (AAV) technology platform company. Our mission is to make safe, autonomous, and eco-friendly air mobility accessible to everyone. EHang provides customers in various industries with AAV products and commercial solutions: air mobility (including passenger transportation and logistics), smart city management, and aerial media solutions. As the forerunner of cutting-edge AAV technologies and commercial solutions in the global Urban Air Mobility (UAM) industry, EHang continues to explore the boundaries of the sky to make flying technologies benefit our life in smart cities. For more information, please visit www.ehang.com.

Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains statements that may constitute “forward-looking” statements pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “aims,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “likely to” and similar statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about management’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to those relating to EH216-S Type Certification, our expectations regarding demand for, and market acceptance of, our AAV products and solutions and the commercialization of UAM services, our relationships with strategic partners, and current litigation and potential litigation involving us. Management has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections. While they believe these expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections are reasonable, such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond management's control. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause EHang's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

Media Contact: pr@ehang.com
Investor Contact: ir@ehang.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2f9194ba-f8a4-4ebf-954e-cd04bb349dc5