Sri Lanka successfully conducted its first official demonstration of a pilotless passenger transport drone at Colombo Port City on Tuesday (11), with Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation Anura Karunathilaka taking a ride aboard the aircraft.
The demonstration marks a significant step towards introducing electric passenger transport drones in the country. Deputy Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation Janitha Ruwan Kodithuwakku and several other officials attended the event.
“It felt like I was flying,” Minister Anura Karunathilaka said, describing his experience after landing.
Speaking to the media, Deputy Minister Kodithuwakku said commercial passenger transport operations using drones are expected to commence within the next six months.
The initiative follows discussions held in August between senior Sri Lankan officials and representatives of Chinese passenger drone manufacturer EHang on introducing electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft for passenger transportation, tourism and emergency services.
The project is initially being implemented as a trial, with testing scheduled to take place over a six-month period at Colombo Port City before commercial operations begin.
An E216 two-seater passenger drone was recently imported to Sri Lanka for the trial programme.
The aircraft is equipped with 16 propellers, 12 battery sets, three flight-control systems and an integrated central computer system.
The pilotless aircraft is operated remotely from a centralised control station and is equipped with safety mechanisms designed to respond automatically to emergencies or communication disruptions.
The project requires coordination among several institutions, including the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka, the Ministry of Defence, the Sri Lanka Air Force, the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, the Port City Economic Commission and relevant tourism and investment authorities.
The initiative is expected to pave the way for the introduction of innovative electric aerial transportation services in Sri Lanka, particularly in the tourism and emergency service sectors.
