The ePlane Company, a Chennai-based deep-tech startup developing electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, has inaugurated a 60,000 sq ft integrated prototyping and testing facility at the IIT Madras Discovery Campus in Thaiyur. The facility is intended to support full-scale aircraft production and certification-ready systems as part of India’s urban air mobility segment.
The facility was inaugurated by Professor V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras. The 163-acre Discovery Campus has been established to support high-technology ventures, with the aerospace unit forming part of its advanced infrastructure.
According to the company, the plant is India’s first integrated site dedicated to the serial production of electric aircraft, combining design, prototyping, subsystem integration and testing under one roof. The facility includes composite fabrication units, electric powertrain assembly lines, avionics testing infrastructure and a dedicated Ground Test Vehicle (GTV) section for subsystem validation and full-scale development. The company will also conduct tethered hover tests at the site as it advances towards Type Certification from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
The company’s e200X aircraft is designed for urban air mobility operations. It has a patented 8 m x 10 m footprint and incorporates Synergistic Lift technology to enable operations in dense urban environments. The company states that the aircraft delivers 35 percent higher energy efficiency compared to conventional designs.
The startup is working with the DGCA to define certification and flight-testing frameworks for eVTOL aircraft in India. It has received Design Organisation Approval (DOA) and acceptance of its Type Certification (TC) application, becoming the first private Indian company to reach this stage, according to the company.
The initial commercial application will focus on air ambulance services rather than passenger operations. The company states that this model aims to reduce critical medical transport times across India by up to seven times.
“The new facility represents our commercial engine for the future,” said Satya Chakravarthy, Founder and Technical Lead of The ePlane Company.
The ePlane Company develops electric aircraft systems in India with a focus on design, certification and manufacturing for urban mobility applications.
