Hong Kong's low-altitude economy picks up speed: Pilot programs expand, cross-border routes planned for next year
From the addition of pilot projects to the deployment of cross - border routes, Hong Kong's low - altitude economy has continued to achieve breakthroughs.
On October 12, Jiemian News learned from Fengfei Aviation that the company will participate in Hong Kong's "regulatory sandbox" pilot project and deploy routes locally. "We have previously applied to participate in the regulatory sandbox pilot, especially for the application of large - scale eVTOL aircraft above one ton," Xie Jia, the senior vice - president of Fengfei Aviation, told Jiemian News.
The "regulatory sandbox" refers to allowing relevant industry participants to test and experiment with project concepts within designated routes. Since 2024, Hong Kong has vigorously promoted the development of the low - altitude industry. In March this year, it launched the first batch of regulatory sandbox projects, and 38 out of the 72 applications became the first - batch pilot projects.
At the International Low - Altitude Economy Summit on October 9, Huang Weilun, the deputy financial secretary of Hong Kong, revealed that 17 of the first 38 pilot projects have been implemented, and it is expected that up to 11 more projects will enter the experimental stage by the end of October. In the next stage, Hong Kong will focus on more complex application scenarios, including cross - border routes between Hong Kong and suitable flight points in the Chinese mainland, low - altitude manned aircraft, etc., which is the advanced version of the "regulatory sandbox X" pilot project.
"Geographically, Hong Kong has many mountains and islands, and there is also traffic congestion on the ground, which provides a demand scenario for the implementation of large - scale eVTOL. Coupled with its large economic scale and high consumption level, the public is willing to try more efficient transportation methods and exchange money for time," Xie Jia analyzed.
In addition to local logistics, cross - border logistics is also the direction targeted by Fengfei Aviation. "Our eVTOL has a maximum commercial payload of 400 kilograms, can fly over 200 kilometers, and has a maximum range of over 250 kilometers, which can cover the entire Greater Bay Area. The market potential of Hong Kong is not limited to its own territory, but should be considered in the context of the entire Greater Bay Area. There is a close flow of people and goods within the region, but it is naturally separated by the Pearl River Estuary. Although there are now various land - based means such as high - speed railways, bridges, and tunnels connecting the cities in the Greater Bay Area, traffic congestion is also very obvious. This kind of regional scenario with natural physical barriers is very suitable for the expanded application of large - scale eVTOL," Xie Jia said.
Fengfei Aviation has experience in cross - city routes. In February last year, its five - seat manned aircraft "Shengshi Long" completed a round - trip flight between the Shekou Cruise Home Port in Shenzhen and the Jiuzhou Port Terminal in Zhuhai. The flight route distance between the two locations is about 52 kilometers, and the flight time is less than 20 minutes.
The policy also reflects Hong Kong's eagerness for this emerging industry. Li Jiachao, the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, put forward the goal of "making Hong Kong a hub for low - altitude innovation applications in the Asia - Pacific region" in his 2025 Policy Address in September. Specific measures include formulating an action plan for the development of the low - altitude economy, optimizing the regulatory sandbox, and developing low - altitude economy insurance products.
"As the Chinese mainland has launched a series of layouts for the low - altitude economy, Hong Kong has also taken actions. Relevant departments of the Hong Kong government have also accelerated their contact with our company this year and communicated with the industry through a series of low - altitude economy forums, which shows that there is an urgent demand locally," a person in charge of a Guangzhou eVTOL aircraft manufacturer told Jiemian News. He also mentioned that policy coordination is a prerequisite for expanding applications. There are differences in the civil aviation systems between the two places. Hong Kong's airworthiness system and civil aviation management regulations mainly follow European standards, while the Chinese mainland follows systems such as CAAC and FAA. It will take time to coordinate the relevant standards.
In terms of legislation, the Hong Kong government completed the first - stage amendment of regulations in July this year, expanding the regulatory scope of the existing "Small Unmanned Aircraft Order" to include drones weighing between 25 and 150 kilograms; and updated the "Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order 1995" to allow non - traditional aircraft to conduct tests under specific conditions.
"The regulatory sandbox is also a model and institutional innovation that allows the actual operation of routes within a local area to explore and form norms and promote the development of the low - altitude ecosystem," Xie Jia believes.
Huang Weilun mentioned that in the next step, the civil aviation laws and regulatory framework will continue to be improved, and the "Action Plan for the Development of the Low - Altitude Economy" will be announced next year. In terms of infrastructure, a dedicated communication spectrum will be launched within this year; in addition, take - off and landing sites, satellite positioning, three - dimensional spatial data systems, and intelligent low - altitude traffic management systems will be planned and deployed in advance.
Regarding aircraft weighing more than 150 kilograms, the latest Policy Address proposes to formulate special laws for such aircraft. In addition, universities and enterprises are also encouraged to promote relevant R & D and applications through existing different funding programs.
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University is relatively ahead in promoting the low - altitude economy. It established the Low - Altitude Economy Research Center last year to conduct interdisciplinary research and launched a master's program in low - altitude economy in September this year. Chen Wenhua, the director of the Low - Altitude Economy Research Center at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, introduced to Jiemian News that the research scope of the center includes the optimization of drone navigation and positioning, the low - altitude traffic management framework and traffic scheduling, and the R & D of materials and battery technologies. "We will conduct R & D according to the local environmental characteristics. For example, in response to the dense building situation, we will enhance GPS technology, design visual navigation, and create a three - dimensional map of the city so that drones can land safely in emergencies even if the navigation fails."
From the perspective of the pilot path, Hong Kong's strategy is to start with small drones and then move on to large - scale eVTOL, and to start with cargo transportation and then move on to passenger transportation. The first - batch pilot projects cover fields and application scenarios such as emergency rescue, logistics and distribution, maintenance and safety inspection, monitoring, and low - altitude infrastructure. Companies such as CLP Power Hong Kong, the Hospital Authority of Hong Kong, and the MTR Corporation have applied drones through the sandbox project.
Mainland manufacturers are another important part of enriching Hong Kong's ecosystem. SF Express Hong Kong launched its first Hong Kong drone route in September with a pilot project for convenient services on outlying islands. Meituan's drones are also preparing their first delivery route locally and have completed their first low - altitude logistics delivery mission. Aircraft manufacturers such as Fengfei Aviation, GAC Group, XPeng Aeroht, and Volant Aerotech have all showcased their low - altitude aircraft at local exhibitions.
Currently, Fengfei's large - scale eVTOL aircraft above one ton has achieved multiple landmark scenarios in the Chinese mainland, including the world's first cross - city land freight flight of eVTOL aircraft above one ton, the world's first material transportation flight to an offshore oil platform by eVTOL aircraft above one ton, and the world's first real - scene water rescue by eVTOL aircraft above one ton. Its world's first eVTOL V2000CG "Kai Rui Ou" above one ton with "three certificates" was delivered to Guangzhou operator Heli Intelligence in July. After the cargo - carrying model obtained the "three airworthiness certificates", Xie Jia pointed out in an interview with Jiemian News that the airworthiness certification for the manned model is also expected to be completed next year.
"In the long run, the manned market has greater potential, but the cross - border logistics scenario in the Greater Bay Area is also very important. If traveling by land, one has to make a detour, and the customs clearance time is also very long. The timeliness of cross - border cargo transportation by ship is relatively slow. The air cargo routes of eVTOL will be an important supplement in the future," Xie Jia said.
Mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area are also stepping up the deployment of cross - border routes. The implementation rules of the "Several Measures of Shenzhen to Support the High - Quality Development of the Low - Altitude Economy" recently issued by the Shenzhen Transport Bureau encourage the deployment of cross - border routes: If an enterprise opens a Shenzhen - Hong Kong cross - border route with take - off and landing points at Shenzhen and Hong Kong ports and operates it regularly, it will receive a one - time reward of 1 million yuan for each route, and a reward of 500,000 yuan if the total number of annual flight sorties reaches 100. For domestic and cross - border routes, each enterprise can receive a maximum of 6 million yuan in subsidies per year.
Compared with the individual tests and applications in the first stage, the next stage of Hong Kong's low - altitude economy will pay more attention to systematicness, such as promoting low - altitude airspace management, establishing a shared system among departments, and integrating take - off and landing points, fleets, and monitoring platforms. In terms of the low - altitude airspace control system, Hong Kong plans to invite local, mainland, and internationally - capable operators to submit project proposals.
On October 9, Chen Shaoxiong, a member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, mentioned in his speech that when planning the Northern Metropolis, it is recommended to reserve land for the construction of low - altitude infrastructure and explore diversified promotion models such as opening up part of the airspace and public - private cooperation to reduce the high upfront investment costs. The Hong Kong government should establish a cross - border and cross - departmental "low - altitude economy facilities task force" with relevant mainland departments, especially Guangdong Province, to jointly develop a digital "low - altitude brain" management system integrating artificial intelligence to achieve real - time monitoring and management of cross - border low - altitude flights.
This article is from "Jiemian News", reporter: Zhang Xilong, published by 36Kr with authorization.