China's AS700 manned airship completes low-altitude demo flight

AS700 airship prepares for taking off from Zhanghe Airport in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, Aug. 1, 2024. (Aviation Industry Corporation of China/Handout via Xinhua)

WUHAN, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Low-altitude tourism in China is embracing a new mode as the country's homegrown AS700 civil manned airship on Thursday successfully made its first demonstration flight.

On Thursday morning, the AS700 airship took off from Zhanghe Airport in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, to show its performance and capabilities in serving low-altitude tourism, according to the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).

This demonstration flight lasted nearly two hours, simulating low-altitude tourism application scenarios via a planned route.

The airship flew over local parks, an island in the river and other popular scenic spots across the city and then safely returned. It flew at a cruising speed of 60 kilometers per hour and an altitude of 500 meters during the flight, said the AVIC.

In the low-altitude skies, passengers aboard the AS700 can enjoy aerial views through the large panoramic side windows. With its moderate speed and an ideal altitude for low-altitude sightseeing, the airship will provide tourists with an experience similar to "floating on clouds" during the stable and safe flight journey, the developer said.

Developed by AVIC Special Vehicle Research Institute, AS700 is a type of single-capsule manned airship, which has a maximum capacity carrying 10 people, including a pilot. It has a maximum take-off weight of 4,150 kg, a maximum flight range of 700 km, and a maximum endurance of 10 hours, according to the AVIC.

AS700 is a type of non-rigid near-equilibrium airship. It can conduct vertical take-off and landing in a narrow field, and it is more mobile and flexible than other types of airships, said the AVIC.

The airship is capable of various applications, such as aerial tours, emergency rescue, urban security, and aerial geophysical surveys.

Last December, the AS700 obtained the type certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

China has a huge market and dense city clusters. The size of the country's low-altitude economy is estimated to have exceeded 500 billion yuan (70.1 billion U.S. dollars) in 2023, with its scale expected to rise to 2 trillion yuan by 2030, according to the CAAC.

The AVIC Special Vehicle Research Institute has already signed the delivery contract for the first AS700 airship, and signed multiple contracts of intent.

The AVIC disclosed that the institute is joining efforts with local governments to explore pilot applications of low-altitude scenarios of airships, and plans to build the country's first low-altitude airship tourism demonstration route.

The AVIC said AS700 manned airships could also be used in the fields of logistics and intelligent surveying and mapping. 

AS700 airship conducts a low-altitude demo flight in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, Aug. 1, 2024. (Aviation Industry Corporation of China/Handout via Xinhua)

AS700 airship conducts a low-altitude demo flight in Jingmen, central China's Hubei Province, Aug. 1, 2024. (Aviation Industry Corporation of China/Handout via Xinhua)