A Chinese company that built an electric flying car has made its first public flight in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday to the delight and amazement of selected guests and reporters.
Dubbed as XPeng X2, the vehicle of the future was manufactured by XPeng Inc., a Chinese electronic firm based in Guangzhou and is only one of the few ‘electric cars’ in the world that has been successfully tested.
X2 has a sleek and futuristic design seen only in sci-fi movies and is powered by a set of eight propellers. It was designed to carry two passengers and claims to reach a top speed of 130 kilometers (80 miles) per hour, according to the manufacturer.
However, the demonstration last Monday, which reportedly lasted for 90 minutes, was unmanned; although the manufacturer earlier claimed they were able to complete a manned test flight in July 2021.
“We are making step-by-step (moves) to the international market,” Minguan Qiu, general manager of Xpeng Aeroht told Reuters.
“First we selected Dubai City because Dubai is the most innovative city in the world,” the Chinese added.
X2’s flying taxi or eVTOL (for electric vertical takeoff and landing) vehicles, is dubbed as a next-generation mode of transport which is expected to ferry passengers from one destination to another faster than an airplane or a helicopter can today, especially amid the growing challenge of congested roadways.
While this type of vehicle is highly-anticipated, it is not expected to be in operation or of service until the next few years.
Currently, the industry is still facing major challenges which include, among others, safety issues, battery life, traffic regulation and air traffic control.
Meanwhile, watch the video of X2’s first public flight by clicking the image below:
