Milestones:
Manned test flights completed (Oct 2025)
Certification basis (G-1) agreed with CAAC (April 2025)

Our Review:

Established in just 2021, Volant is a Shanghai based startup that is moving strikingly fast. It has received significant funding from Dubai investors in the last couple years and is preparing for certification testing in China. The design resembles the Boeing-backed Wisk autonomous air taxis, but with 6 seats instead of 4, and of course requires a pilot.

Can a company moving this fast be prepared to compete with existing short-range aircraft and helicopters? Perhaps. They do have 1,900 orders (allegedly). Can they compete with Silicon Valley based Joby?

Not much technical information is given on their website, so it is hard to balance their claims, but we’ll keep digging and make an update. The area we are most interested in learning more is the kind of noise levels this aircraft would produce. Operating 1,900 aircraft in urban areas will certainly tickle your eardrums.

*Range, endurance, and max speed are reported by the manufacturer. These specifications are not yet verified by performance tests. Personal Air Mobility comments on these claims in engineering reviews, but does not independently verify their validity.