Photo: TCab Tech
Here’s a fun name for a future air taxi – “TCab”. Well, that’s actually part of the manufacturer’s name, TCab Tech, and it’s supposed to stand for “Time Taxi.” Although it will be powered by electricity, this eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) is more about making passengers happy, rather than cutting emissions.
Most eVTOLs gearing up to enter service over the next years are praised for their green propulsion technology, coupled with top performance. The actual experience of future passengers is often left to the side, although it should be at the center of these new developments. While zero emissions are a major focus for the industry, people care more about comfort and spending less time in the air.
The new E20 is just one of the numerous eVTOLs out there, planning to become air taxis. In terms of performance, its specifications aren’t exactly jumping off the page. The E20 is fitted with six propellers, four of which are tilt propellers, for forward flight and transition, while the double-stacked fixed ones are used for the vertical take-off and landing.
It boasts a moderate range of 200 km (125 miles) at a cruising speed of 260 kph (162 mph) and it’s large enough to transport four passengers (plus the pilot).
In terms of safety, it’s fitted with a DEP (distributed electric propulsion system) so that in case one or more of its propellers fails, the remaining ones are enough to land the aircraft as safely as possible. Plus, the E20 is designed with a high wing that’s supposed to provide the passengers with a safer and easier way to enter and exit.
But what’s most important for the manufacturer of the E20 is that commute times will be drastically reduced. And this is really important in a place like China, with its huge population. This is what the E20 is all about: helping people get to their daily destination faster and more comfortably.
TCab Tech is a young company that has joined the air mobility industry in China just two years ago. But it seems to be doing well. Two initial founding rounds helped it secure almost $10 million, and a recently-completed financing round raised that to nearly $15 million.
The Shanghai-based startup says that it now has sufficient funds to manufacture the E20 prototype and kick off flight testing. That should be unfolding pretty fast, since the manufacturer claims to be ready to launch its air taxi as soon as 2024.
It seems that the TCab eVTOL will initially be geared towards the tourism sector, and then move on to aerial-ridesharing services in urban centers. And if you’re wondering about the production costs for this Chinese air taxi, they’re somewhere between $500,000 and $750,000.
The new E20 is just one of the numerous eVTOLs out there, planning to become air taxis. In terms of performance, its specifications aren’t exactly jumping off the page. The E20 is fitted with six propellers, four of which are tilt propellers, for forward flight and transition, while the double-stacked fixed ones are used for the vertical take-off and landing.
It boasts a moderate range of 200 km (125 miles) at a cruising speed of 260 kph (162 mph) and it’s large enough to transport four passengers (plus the pilot).
In terms of safety, it’s fitted with a DEP (distributed electric propulsion system) so that in case one or more of its propellers fails, the remaining ones are enough to land the aircraft as safely as possible. Plus, the E20 is designed with a high wing that’s supposed to provide the passengers with a safer and easier way to enter and exit.
But what’s most important for the manufacturer of the E20 is that commute times will be drastically reduced. And this is really important in a place like China, with its huge population. This is what the E20 is all about: helping people get to their daily destination faster and more comfortably.
TCab Tech is a young company that has joined the air mobility industry in China just two years ago. But it seems to be doing well. Two initial founding rounds helped it secure almost $10 million, and a recently-completed financing round raised that to nearly $15 million.
The Shanghai-based startup says that it now has sufficient funds to manufacture the E20 prototype and kick off flight testing. That should be unfolding pretty fast, since the manufacturer claims to be ready to launch its air taxi as soon as 2024.
It seems that the TCab eVTOL will initially be geared towards the tourism sector, and then move on to aerial-ridesharing services in urban centers. And if you’re wondering about the production costs for this Chinese air taxi, they’re somewhere between $500,000 and $750,000.
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