This post was originally published on Autocar
Aircraft folds up and automatically loads into the rear of the ‘mothership’
Six-wheeled ‘mothership’ with range-extender electric powertrain is used to transport folding six-rotor aircraft
The radical Xpeng AeroHT Land Aircraft Carrier – a six-wheeled off-truck with a built-in modular ‘flying car’ – is on track to begin mass production in 2026 after making its public debut recently.
Both the car and the compact eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) aircraft were shown at the recent CES tech show in Las Vegas.
Its maker, Xpeng AeroHT, a subsidiary of UK-bound Chinese electric car maker Xpeng Motors, said it had already received more than 3000 ‘intent orders’.
The Land Aircraft Carrier was announced in January 2024, and the aircraft has now completed its first test flights in China and received its type certification approval – a key step towards it being allowed to conduct public flights.
“This will appeal to multiple customer types,” Xpeng AeroHT co-founder and chief designer Wang Tan told Autocar.
“There are people who like to go off-road, and this vehicle has a six-wheel set-up and a differential lock that gives it real off-road ability.
“It will also offer another dimension to people who fly. I’m a pilot, and every time I want to fly, I need to go to the airport, and if I have my own helicopter, I might need a trailer. It makes it all very difficult, but with this, I can take my eVTOL anywhere.”
The ‘mothership’ EV has been developed largely by Xpeng Motors on behalf of Xpeng AeroHT. It’s around 5.5 metres in length and 2.0 metres wide, which Tan claimed will allow it to fit in “standard” parking spaces.
It features a striking design, with a bluff front end and a sloping rear roof, along with ‘suicide’ rear doors to create a large central opening.
While Xpeng AeroHT hasn’t yet given full technical details, it has said the truck will use a range-extender EV powertrain that will give it a combined range in excess of 620 miles on the Chinese test cycle.
The aircraft folds up and can be automatically loaded into and unloaded from the rear of the truck.
It’s a six-rotor design with a two-seat cockpit that makes extensive use of carbonfibre to save weight.
Tan explained that the shape of the aircraft was largely determined by the dimensions of the truck.
“We had to follow the function,” he said. “We needed it to make it compact when folded so there was room for passengers in the truck, and there were limits to the size of the truck so it could fit on the road.”
At present, it takes around four minutes for the aircraft to unfold from the truck, but Tan said that “the target we’re trying to achieve is three minutes.” He added: “We’ve got almost 100 engineers just working on the docking system.”
Tan said there’s still a couple of years work left but development was on track for first deliveries to begin at some point in 2026.
Pricing is still unconfirmed, but Tan said it will be “less than $300,000”, which is higher than his initial estimate last year.
It will be launched first in China, where it’s further along in securing the necessary approvals from road and air authorities, but Tan said interest is global.
He cited a safari tour operator as one company that had placed a number of reservations.