BEIJING (Reuters) -China flew its biggest-yet unmanned cargo aircraft designed for civilian use, as the world’s top drone-making nation steps up test flights of autonomous aerial vehicles (UAVs) that could ultimately ferry everything from takeouts to people. #ChinaCargoDrone
Packing a payload capacity of 2 metric tons, the twin-engine aircraft took off on Sunday for its inaugural flight. State media, citing developer Sichuan Tengden Sci-tech Innovation Co., reported the trip lasted about 20 minutes in southwestern Sichuan province.
China’s civilian drone makers are testing larger payloads as the government pushes for a low-altitude economy. The aviation regulator anticipates a 2-trillion-yuan ($279-billion) industry by 2030, marking a four-fold expansion from 2023.
The Tengden-built drone has a wingspan of 16.1 meters and a height of 4.6 meters. It is slightly larger than the Cessna 172, the world’s most popular light aircraft.
The trial run followed the maiden flight in June of a cargo drone developed by state-owned Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC), the leading aerospace enterprise.
The AVIC’s HH-100 has a payload capacity of 700 kg and a flight radius of 520 km. Next year, AVIC plans to test its biggest cargo drone, the TP2000. This new drone can carry up to 2 tons of cargo and fly four times farther than the HH-100.
China has already begun commercial deliveries by drone.
In May, cargo drone firm Phoenix Wings, part of delivery giant SF Express, started delivering fresh fruit from the island province of Hainan to southern Guangdong, using Fengzhou-90 drones developed by SF, a unit of S.F. Holding. #ChinaCargoDrone
Cargo drones promise shorter delivery times and lower transport costs, Chinese industry insiders say, while widening deliveries to sites lacking conventional aviation facilities, such as rooftop spaces in heavily built-up cities.
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