Chinese EV maker Xpeng aims to deliver its first flying car in 2026

Xpeng AeroHT, an affilaite of Xpeng, aims to deliver its flying car to customers in 2026, the Chinese electric vehicle maker's co-president told CNBC on Friday,

Last year, Xpeng AeroHT introduced the Land Aircraft Carrier — a large truck with a flying two-seater passenger electric drone inside. The flying car can detach from the truck, and people can then get into the drone and fly it.

Brian Gu, co-president of Xpeng, said the vehicle will be available for pre-order this year, adding that the company hopes to deliver the unit in 2026.

"The reason we are confident, because we are designing this for the use not in urban centers, but for outskirts in scenic areas where … we will work with municipalities to create flying parks and flying zones that allow people to enjoy flying without the hassle of getting all the complicated approvals," Gu noted.

Xpeng said this year that the flying car is currently going through a certification process with the Chinese aviation regulator.

The 2026 timeline is slightly later than the fourth-quarter 2025 delivery target that Xpeng had previously touted.

Gu said passengers will not require a special license to fly the drone for initial use.

"Because we are using leisure and sports related use case for the initial use of that flying device. As you move more closer to urban … centers, you do need special licenses and that will be a lot more complicated to get approval for," Gu said.

Xpeng has been looking to expand into other areas of electric mobility, with company CEO He Xiaopeng previously telling CNBC that robotics and flying cars were part of the company's longer-term goals.