A bold step into medium-range autonomous flight, combining compact form and intercity ambition

In a move that may recalibrate expectations for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, EHang has introduced its latest creation, the VT35, a next-generation long-range pilotless model purposed for medium- to long-distance aerial mobility. The announcement on October 13, 2025, marks the public debut of an aircraft that pushes beyond short-hop urban flights into intercity and regional connectivity.

At its heart, the VT35 carries a design range of approximately 200 kilometers (roughly 124 miles) under full load conditions. This extends its operational envelope far beyond many earlier eVTOL concepts focused solely on intraurban routes. The new model is positioned to bridge cities, cross seas or mountain ranges, and connect points that lie just beyond the reach of purely urban aviation solutions.

What distinguishes the VT35 is not just its range, but how EHang has wrapped performance in a fresh architectural approach. The aircraft adopts a lift-and-cruise layout: eight distributed lift propellers facilitate vertical ascent and descent, which then transition to cruise flight powered by a pusher propeller and conventional fixed wings. This compromise aims to reconcile VTOL capability with efficient forward flight at higher speeds. The aircraft is described as having a tandem-wing layout, lending itself to more compact dimensions and aerodynamics optimized for stability and cruise efficiency.

Physically, the VT35 measures approximately 8 meters in both length and wingspan, with a height of about 3 meters. Its maximum takeoff weight is capped at 950 kg. The design emphasizes footprint reduction and operational alignment with EHang’s existing vertiport infrastructure. One of its selling points is compatibility with EH216-S vertiports, meaning existing vertical takeoff/landing sites (rooftops, parking lots, parks, etc.) can be reused without wholesale reinvention.

EHang has also signaled its regulatory and commercialization intent. The VT35 has already completed transition flight testing, and in March 2025, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) accepted its type certificate application. The aircraft is currently undergoing airworthiness certification. In China’s domestic market, EHang has priced the standard VT35 at RMB 6.5 million (just under one million USD in many conversion estimates).

In unveiling the VT35, EHang casts it as a bridge between urban air mobility and regional aerial transit. The company positions the aircraft as part of “one-hour air mobility living circles” connecting metropolitan clusters, bay areas, and archipelagos—bringing a layered aerial mobility network where short-range urban eVTOLs complement this new mid-range variant.

Yet the path from specification to operational reality remains steep. Certification, safety validation, reliability under real-world conditions, infrastructure integration, traffic management, battery endurance under variable loads, and public acceptance all await rigorous proof. But in the unveiling of the VT35, EHang offers a glimpse of a future in which vertical flight may not just hover above cities, but stitch them together across distances that were once the domain of cars, trains, or conventional aircraft.

The VT35 thus stands as a fresh design milestone—compact, forward-leaning, range-ambitious, and strategically placed to grow the spatial reach of urban mobility into the hinterlands. It may well become a key reference point in the ongoing evolution of aerial mobility networks.

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