{"id":13979,"date":"2021-03-27T11:49:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-27T18:49:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cafe.foundation\/blog\/?p=13979"},"modified":"2021-03-27T11:49:00","modified_gmt":"2021-03-27T18:49:00","slug":"landing-baobab-trees-ehang","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cafe.foundation\/blog\/landing-baobab-trees-ehang\/","title":{"rendered":"Landing in the Baobab Trees with eHang"},"content":{"rendered":"

eHang, expanding its horizons with its two-passenger EH216 autonomous aerial vehicles (AAVs), has announced a partnership with Italian architecture firm Giancarlo Zema Design Group (GZDG)<\/a>.\u00a0 GZDG\u2019s eco-sustainable, Baobab tree-mimicking vertiport will act as a landing zone for eHang\u2019s electric Vertical Take Off and Landing (eVTOL) craft.<\/p>\n

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eHang 216 approaching Baobab-inspired landing site<\/p><\/div>\n

Basing its design on the Baobab tree<\/a>, native to Madagascar, Africa, and Australia, GZDG\u2019s structure will fit into urban and rural environments equally well.\u00a0 The 30-meter (98.4-feet) tower, built of laminated wood and steel emulating the shape of the \u201cTree of Life,\u201d the vertiport will be topped with a multi-purpose landing deck.\u00a0 The structure will incorporate a waiting room, caf\u00e9, a 200-square-meter (2,153-square-foot) panoramic restaurant and connecting lift.\u00a0 Non-slip photovoltaic panels will generate over 300 kilowatts of electric power per day.<\/p>\n

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Avenue of the Baobabs (UNESCO World Heritage site), Madagascar. Trees are also found in Africa and Australia<\/p><\/div>\n

GZDG\u2019s vertiport is a green design made of sustainable construction materials, \u201cand can generate energy to recharge the EH216 passenger-grade AAVs.\u201d According to the partner\u2019s joint press release, \u201cVertiports will play a significant role in the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) market and the new era of flight. When integrated into the existing transportation infrastructure, vertiports can serve as aerial hubs for tourists.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Plan view for eHang’s Baobab landing zone shows charging modules, central lift<\/p><\/div>\n

With the first Baobab vertiport being built in Italy, EHang and GZDG aim to enter the emerging global eco-tourism sector, with multiple projects being planned in Europe and Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n

eHang is already exploring those projects with a strategic partner based in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n