Chinese aircraft developer AutoFlight delivered on 2 April the first example of its Prosperity electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to an unspecified Japanese operator.

The company also reveals that it recently secured type certification of its autonomous cargo variant, known as CarryAll, from Chinese aviation authorities. 

The unnamed Japanese customer will be “identified in due course”, AutoFlight says, adding that the operator is planning eVTOL demonstration flights at the 2025 Osaka World Expo – an event viewed as a potential showcase for the advanced air mobility sector. 

The aircraft’s delivery marks the “world’s first inaugural delivery of a civilian ton-class eVTOL”, says the air taxi maker. Prosperity is a piloted, four-passenger aircraft that features 10 direct-drive propellers for lift and two rear-mounted propellers for cruise flight.

“The official delivery of the first Prosperity to a customer signifies a new chapter for AutoFlight as we begin to ship our innovative electric aircraft to global markets,” says chief executive Tian Yu. 

AutoFlight's

Source: AutoFlight

AutoFlight’s “Generation 4” Prosperity I electric air taxi demonstrator will inform the eventual production aircraft 

The company also discloses that CarryAll, the autonomous cargo variant of Prosperity, on 22 March obtained type certification from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). 

AutoFlight calls CarryAll the “world’s first eVTOL aircraft above one ton to have been awarded type certification”. The aircraft will be able to transport a 400kg (880lb) payload on routes of up to 135nm (250km).

“On the cargo side, the receipt of orders for over 200 CarryAll planes already demonstrates a very strong market demand for our products,” Yu says. 

AutoFlight's

Source: AutoFlight

Chinese type certification of AutoFlight’s CarryAll cargo variant is expected to pave the way for the passenger-carrying Prosperity eVTOL 

Logistics company ZTO Express holds 30 orders for CarryAll, according to AutoFlight. 

Certification of the cargo variant involved ”eight major compliance tests, including plateau performance, data link and ground station functions, involving 156 flights” and a total flight distance of more than 5,400nm (10,000km). 

”Successfully completing this certification was a lengthy and extremely rigorous process and I would like to thank the review team and all my colleagues for their painstaking efforts,” Yu says. ”This achievement establishes a robust foundation for AutoFlight’s forthcoming large-scale commercial operations.”

The company has previously stated that it is pushing for Chinese type certification of passenger-carrying Prosperity in late 2026 or early 2027, with European approval to follow. 

AutoFlight is headquartered in Shanghai and has offices and facilities in both Germany and the USA. 

Chinese eVTOL developer EHang was the first to have been awarded CAAC type certification for its lighter, two-passenger EH216-S aircraft. 

Howard Hardee is Americas aviation reporter for FlightGlobal.com and Flight International magazine, covering major and regional airlines in North America and low-emissions initiatives throughout the industry. He formerly covered politics for journalism nonprofit Wisconsin Watch and has written about science, music, travel and forestry as a freelancer for dozens of blogs, newspapers and magazines.View full Profile

More from Howard Hardee

Topics