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Sichuan Airlines unit orders 50 Volant VE25-100 eVTOLs, 20 of them firm
Sichuan Airlines Group's low-altitude unit signed a purchase agreement for 50 Volant VE25-100 passenger eVTOLs. Volant says 20 are firm orders and 30 are intended orders. The aircraft has no type certificate yet, and no price or delivery schedule was published.
Shanghai Volant Aerotech and Sichuan Airlines Group's low-altitude economy company signed a purchase agreement for 50 VE25-100 passenger eVTOLs on October 14, at the Zigong Low-Altitude Economy Industry Development Conference, Volant said in a Chinese-language release. Volant's English release followed on October 19.
Firm versus intended
Volant says 20 of the 50 aircraft are firm orders. Its Chinese release describes the other 30 as intended orders (意向订单), and ch-aviation reports them as options. Neither company disclosed a price, deposit, delivery schedule or cancellation terms. So it isn't clear what "firm" commits the buyer to.
The order builds on a strategic cooperation agreement the two signed in August, covering R&D and certification, scenario validation, operations and market expansion, Volant says. Before the VE25-100 receives a type certificate, the companies plan joint R&D testing and pilot operations. Their planned uses in the Sichuan-Chongqing region are airport shuttles, urban air mobility, emergency transport, premium business travel and low-altitude tourism.
Where the aircraft stands
ch-aviation reports that the VE25-100 is designed to carry five passengers and one pilot, with a range of 200 to 400 km, and that it remains under type certification. By Volant's own account:
- Its first development aircraft, AC101, was rolled out in Zigong in May 2025 and made its first piloted flight that October.
- In May 2026 it flew a piloted full-transition flight at Zigong Lantian Airport. Volant calls this China's first and says it made Volant the third company in the world to do it.
- In August 2026 it rolled out AC102, which it calls its first airworthiness-standard aircraft. Volant says AC102 has made its first flight and a full-transition flight. The Chinese release says that transition flight was uncrewed.
Volant also says it already holds confirmed orders from customers including China Southern Airlines General Aviation, Asian Express Aviation and ABC Financial Leasing.
What is not established
The CAAC has not issued a type certificate for the VE25-100, and neither company gave a date for one. There is no published price or delivery date, and the flight-test claims above come from Volant and haven't been independently verified.
Sources
Facts as reported by the linked sources as of Oct 19, 2026. Company targets are plans, not guarantees. Corrections: see About.