The Civil Aviation Administration of China is the first air safety agency to issue type certification for an eVTOL aircraft, having cleared EHang's EH216-S two-seat model to start commercial, passenger-carrying flights in the country. More remarkably, the EH216-S will operate autonomously with operations coordinated from ground control centers—something that no other international aviation regulator appears to be even close to allowing.

This week, U.S. eVTOL aircraft developers Supernal and Overair both launched collaborations with partners in South Korea in response to strong government backing for development of an AAM ecosystem. Korean Air is joining a strategic partnership with Supernal, which is part of the country's Hyundai automotive group. Overair is expanding its work with industrial group Hanwha Systems to cooperate with local officials on the self-governing province of Jeju Island.

The Abu Dhabi Investment Office has agreed to back Archer Aviation's plans to make the United Arab Emirates its Middle East regional hub for advanced air mobility service. Under a new agreement, the government-backed agency will grant incentives and make unspecified capital expenditures, while local companies Falcon Aviation and GAL AMMROC are expected, respectively, to get involved in aircraft operations and maintenance.

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Texas-based EMC Jet has become the first U.S. dealer for the Lilium Jet eVTOL aircraft and will market the German manufacturer's Pioneer Edition, which features a more spacious cabin than the standard six-passenger model. Lilium is prioritizing sales in the private aviation market and has agreements in place with four dealers.

Flight-simulation specialist Quantum3D partnered with Canadian eVTOL developer Limosa to create a mixed-reality flight simulator for eVTOL aircraft such as the LimoConnect. The simulator made its public debut at the Airtaxi World Congress, where Limosa also conducted a flight demonstration with a subscale technology demonstrator.

During this week's NBAA-BACE business aviation show in Las Vegas, Daher CEO Didier Kayat reported that the EcoPulse company's distributed propulsion technology demonstrator will fly for the first time on electric power “within the next two weeks or so.” Kayat has committed Daher to launching a hybrid-electric production aircraft by 2027, with the specification expected to be defined next year.

Honeywell will use its connectivity technology to operate ground control stations to handle both uncrewed and remotely piloted eVTOL aircraft. The company has started working on these plans with eVTOL vehicle developer Supernal.

Airbus tests eVTOL flight controls; Beta installs first electric charging station in Massachusetts; MightyFly builds next-generation cargo drone; Flybird to use Eviation’s Alice for regional services; Whisper Aero promises to silence leaf blowers; and Aerovy closes pre-seed funding round.

Beta Technologies has partnered with local FBO Shoreline Aviation to open an electric charging station for aircraft and ground vehicles at Marshfield Municipal Airport, halfway between Boston and Cape Cod. Company CEO Kyle Clark and colleagues were in town for an October 13 opening ceremony, and so too was the company's Alia electric aircraft, which is making multiple stops along the U.S. East Coast as it heads to Florida to take part in flight trials with the U.S. Air Force's Afwerx research and development program.