Arabic version: إكس بنغ تقول إن مركبتها الطائرة قد تُطرح الصيف المقبل

According to The Guardian, people in China could begin taking trips in so-called flying cars as soon as next summer. Deli Zhao, chief executive of Chinese flying car company XPeng, said its two-seat, autopilot-equipped low-altitude device would be ready for recreational users in rural locations and emergency services in the second half of 2027.

The $300,000 (£225,000) vehicle has been approved by China’s civil aviation authorities for limited use after 10 years of development, including trials of flying motorbikes at the company’s Guangzhou base. Although called a flying car, it has no wheels and is more accurately described as a helicopter-style drone.

Its cockpit is about the size of a Fiat 500. Six battery-powered, drone-like propellers lift it into the air, while a joystick steers it. The vehicle can also fly autonomously to a programmed destination. Zhao, a trained pilot, said he could teach anyone to fly it in five minutes.

The price includes a six-wheel van about the size of a Ford Transit. The flying vehicle unfolds from the rear of the van “just like the Transformers”, Zhao said. At the Web Summit in Lisbon on Tuesday, a prototype drew large crowds. Zhao said nobody had been injured or hurt using the vehicle.

XPeng’s device can cruise up to 1km above the ground and has a range of 30km (18.6 miles). Zhao said the range would soon be doubled by raising battery energy density to 400 kilowatts per kilogram. It will initially be restricted to approved park areas in China and emergency services reaching inaccessible locations.

Zhao said XPeng was one of about 20 Chinese firms working on flying vehicles, part of Beijing’s push to develop a “low-altitude economy”. He said the company had signed agreements with the United Arab Emirates and countries in south-east Asia, and aimed to enter the European market as soon as possible.