During a EHang 216-S taxi test flight in the PIK 2 area of Tangerang, Banten, on Wednesday, the ministry’s director of airworthiness and aircraft operations, Sokhib Al Rohman, said that his office will add several points to the law to accommodate the legality of the futuristic transportation mode.
“We plan to revise or amend Law Number 1 of 2009, where we would like to include the accommodation of operations, starting from design, personnel, facilities,” Rohman informed.
The ministry will hold a meeting with the Civil Aviation Administration of China to discuss the validation of the type certificate for the Chinese product so that it can be officially recognized and operated by operators in Indonesia, he added.
After the validation process, Indonesia will have a legal basis to issue standard operating procedures for the commercial use of EHang 216-S, he said.
Certificate validation is the process of verifying and recognizing a product design (such as an aircraft) by authorized authorities to ensure the product meets the required safety and airworthiness standards before it is produced and operated commercially.
On Wednesday, the EHang 216-S flying taxi made a demo flight at Phantom Ground Park PIK 2, after obtaining permission from the Ministry of Transportation for carrying passengers in the cabin.
The flying taxi, which resembles a large drone, has been exhibited on several occasions earlier, including during test flight demonstrations, both without passengers and with human dummies.
Wednesday marked the first time the pilotless flying taxi carried passengers in the cabin, following the issuance of a new permit by the Directorate of Airworthiness and Aircraft Operations.
EHang 216-S uses an AAV (autonomous aerial vehicle) technology manned by artificial intelligence (AI).
Measuring 1.77 meters in height and 5.61 meters in width, the vehicle can carry loads of up to 220 kilograms. Its flight distance with maximum load is 35 kilometers, with a flight time of 21 minutes and a maximum speed of 130 km per hour.
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Translator: Pamela Sakina, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
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