Seizing the strategic opportunity for the development of the low-altitude economy, Dongguan is accelerating the high-quality development of its low-altitude economy. Recently, the “Implementation Plan for Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Low-Altitude Economy in Dongguan (2024-2026)” (hereinafter referred to as the “Plan”) was officially issued. The Plan outlines 20 measures across five major areas: implementing coordinated planning and promotion, optimizing the industrial ecosystem, leading through technological innovation, demonstrating application scenarios, and building a flight support system.
The Plan proposes that by 2026, the low-altitude economy will become a new important growth driver for Dongguan’s high-quality economic development. By then, Dongguan will have essentially established an industrial system centered around the research and development of low-altitude aircraft, with low-altitude application scenarios as the driving force, and its low-altitude flight service support capabilities will be significantly enhanced.
In terms of implementing the coordinated planning and promotion project, Dongguan will actively strengthen in-depth cooperation with cities like Guangzhou and Shenzhen, focusing on areas such as ground support infrastructure, low-altitude information infrastructure, and flight “air route networks.” Dongguan will tailor its efforts to local conditions, actively create low-altitude economy industrial clusters, and encourage collaboration between industry, academia, research, and investment to establish the Dongguan Low-Altitude Economy Industry Alliance.
Relevant manufacturing products for Dongguan’s low-altitude economy
“Technological innovation + advanced manufacturing” is Dongguan’s urban characteristic. Dongguan will focus on three areas: vigorously developing the low-altitude manufacturing industry, enhancing investment attraction for leading enterprises in complete aircraft manufacturing, and promoting the development of the production-oriented services sector in the low-altitude economy, all as part of an industrial ecosystem optimization initiative. Dongguan will encourage enterprises in industries such as new energy, high-end equipment manufacturing, next-generation electronic information, and new materials to participate in the development of the low-altitude economy, focusing on adaptive technologies, products, and key components to strengthen industry cultivation. The Plan also encourages the establishment of industries in new niche sectors and supports the legal and compliant export of low-altitude aircraft to gain more market share. Furthermore, the Plan emphasizes intensifying efforts to attract leading enterprises, especially key players in the industrial chain, and to gather a group of leading companies in UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) development and industry solutions. In terms of the industrial chain, Dongguan will actively develop supporting industries such as low-altitude operations, full-cycle flight maintenance, low-altitude flight training, and UAV pilot training, fostering an industrial chain that integrates “testing + application + services.”
Songshan Lake High-Tech Industry Development Zone
The Plan proposes that Dongguan will implement a project led by technology innovation. Dongguan will actively cultivate high-end innovation platforms for the low-altitude economy, encouraging enterprises to lead the establishment of innovation platforms and supporting joint research and development platforms, technology innovation alliances, and innovation consortia between enterprises, universities, and research institutes. To promote the industrialization of technological achievements in the low-altitude economy, Dongguan will also actively advance the construction of pilot verification platforms and build a number of high-level innovation platforms. It will tackle key core technologies, attract high-level innovative talents, and accelerate the enhancement of the localization capability of core components.
Application scenario innovation is a crucial means of fostering mutual promotion between industry and technology and developing new productive forces in line with local conditions. Dongguan plans to build demonstration scenarios for smart logistics in the low-altitude sector, explore the opening of passenger air transport routes, and fully support the “High-quality Development Project for Guangdong Counties, Towns and Villages” by implementing an application scenario demonstration project. The Plan mentions that Dongguan will promote the implementation of UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) logistics delivery applications, plan the launch of low-altitude logistics collection and delivery services, and support enterprises in implementing applications such as “UAV + smart logistics” in Dongguan. The city also encourages the use of helicopters, passenger eVTOLs, and other low-altitude aircraft to explore new low-altitude industries such as aerial commuting, business travel, air shuttling, multi-leg connections, and cross-border flights.
In terms of constructing the flight support system, Dongguan will focus on the city’s, regional, and cross-border low-altitude passenger and cargo transportation needs, conducting in-depth research on the establishment of low-altitude airspace. Improving low-altitude infrastructure is also a key focus. Based on the requirements for low-altitude flight activities, airspace, and route planning within the city, Dongguan will build low-altitude aviation airports, vertical takeoff and landing points, logistics distribution stations, and other necessary facilities in locations such as parks, rooftops of commercial buildings, rail transit stations, and bus terminals. The city will also construct supporting facilities for operations, including communication networks, monitoring systems, and low-altitude meteorological monitoring networks. Dongguan will explore the development of a low-altitude smart network, ensuring the interconnection of low-altitude flight data and creating a “smart aerial roadway.” Additionally, Dongguan aims to improve the efficiency of low-altitude flight management and approval processes, providing enterprises with “one-stop” services, enabling real-time information sharing, and automating data processing.
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Dongguan’s low-altitude economy will strive to achieve the following goals by 2026:
Leverage Dongguan’s manufacturing support advantages to focus on whole low-altitude aircraft, adaptable technologies and products such as electronic components, core sensors, lidar, as well as key parts like batteries, motors, electric controls, propellers, composite materials, and aluminum-magnesium alloys. The aim is to gather over 200 enterprises in the supply chain, with the industry scale exceeding 50 billion yuan.
Create a series of demonstration application scenarios in areas such as logistics and delivery, passenger flights, tourism and consumer activities, emergency rescue, urban management, and rail transit. The goal is to open more than 10 cargo flight routes and strive to launch at least one commercialized passenger flight route, making breakthrough progress in commercial UAV flights.
