China’s AS700 Successfully Completes First Delivery Flight, Marking New Era of Civil Balloon Aircraft Development

The AS700, a manned civil balloon aircraft developed by China, successfully completed its first delivery flight on March 30. The aircraft took off from Jingmen city, Hubei province, at 6:04 a.m. on March 30 and landed in Jingzhou city after a 106-minute flight. It then returned to Kinh Mon, completing the first handover flight.

The developer of the AS700 is the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The AS700 uses a single capsule design with a single point landing gear and is intended to meet the needs of air travel, emergency rescue, and urban service provision. It has a maximum takeoff weight of 4,150 kg, a maximum flight range of 700 km, and a maximum flight time of 10 hours. The aircraft can carry up to 10 people, including a pilot, and has a maximum speed of 100 km/h.

The flight on March 30 was aimed at verifying the performance of the AS700 comprehensively. According to Zhou Lei, the chief designer of the AS700 manned aircraft project, the flight completed all assigned tasks and tested the air-ground communication capabilities and the ability to take off and land at different locations. With thrust vector control technology, the aircraft can take off and land vertically in narrow spaces, which helps save operating costs. The AS700 received certification from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) in December 2023, becoming the country’s first civil airship aircraft to be independently developed and certified. The project team has received about 20 orders