GAC plans to open reservations for its Govy Airjet flying taxi in 2025

The Chinese manufacturer GAC has just officially unveiled what will be its new brand dedicated exclusively to electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles, commonly known as eVTOLs. The company has also taken the opportunity to present the first model from Govy, the AirJet.

GAC plans to begin the airworthiness certification of the Govy AirJet in 2025, and then to establish production lines and start accepting reservations.

The Govy AirJet is GAC’s second flying taxi, with an electric range in this case of 200 kilometres; ten times more than the Govy AirCar, which is ideal for short trips of no more than 20 kilometres. The new model’s top speed, on the other hand, reaches 250 km/h, and its fast-charging time is just 30 minutes. An important aspect to highlight about the Govy AirJet is that GAC plans to equip it in the future with solid-state batteries, which would extend its estimated range to around 400 kilometres, making long-distance flights viable.

With the latest aeronautical technology

According to the company, the Govy AirJet is equipped with an eight-axis distributed propulsion system, a 100 kW electric motor, and a triplicated, heterogeneous control system for greater safety. This air vehicle incorporates an intelligent system for detection, decision-making and obstacle avoidance, relying for this on a system of radars and cameras.

As we have already mentioned, next year, 2025, GAC will begin the airworthiness certification of its new eVTOL, which it describes as a Robo-AirTaxi capable of meeting a wide variety of mobility needs. The company then aims to begin demonstrating the operability of these vehicles in 2027 in two or three cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

GAC is not, however, the first Chinese manufacturer to bet on the flying taxi or eVTOL sector. XPENG, for example, has its own division dedicated to this type of vehicle, under the XPENG AeroHT brand. Meanwhile, Geely made a significant investment in the German company Volocopter, which could increase soon to complete its acquisition. Outside China, Stellantis deserves mention, as it has also invested in Archer, a California-based startup dedicated to the development and production of this type of vehicle.