Chennai-based electric aviation taxi startup Eplane Co is hoping to raise another $30 million as it prepares to build three prototypes in 2026 and lays the foundation for its first release.
The startup has been conservative in attacking investors, earning $20 million since its inception in 2019. This includes $14 million raised in November from Venture Capital company Speciale Invest and others.
Founder and CEO Satyanarayan Chakravarthy said Eplane’s proposed Series C fundraising tour could raise funds again next year.
“If investors align with our vision and goals, we will earn up to $100 million in revenue in the next round of financing,” Chakravarthy told MINT.
“This is a capital-intensive field because it involves the manufacturing of the taxi itself, and the next two rounds of financing will be the key to our start of commercial business and generating revenue operations in late 2026 or early 2027.”
The startup was incubated at the Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai, the first startup to propose domestic air taxis. The Civil Aviation Administration of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued three sets of rules on pilot training for aircraft standards, landing ports and air taxis, and the maintenance and air traffic regulations are still pending.
Last month, DGCA also identified five “sandbox” or ground control testing locations in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. Chakravarthy said the test flight of the air taxi that Eplane Co intends to take will begin at the end of this year, followed by more meticulous trials next year.
Chakravarthy, widely known by his peers as “Satya”, holds a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology in the United States. There he further postdoctoral fellowship, he joined IIT-Madras as professor in 1997.
By the end of 2020, Chakravarthy turned from teaching to focusing on the startup, but resumed teaching on a limited scale last August.
Read also | Electric taxis have entered a difficult landing
Take off the world
Eplane Co is now looking to scale up. Last week, the startup recently signed a non-binding agreement with the International Critical Care Air Transfer Team (ICATT) to provide 788 air ambulances in a temporary $1 billion deal. The startup announced on Tuesday that it expanded to three global markets: the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia and Thailand.
Chakravarthy said the company also spoke with civil aviation authorities in Malaysia and Singapore for regulatory clarity and market expansion.
“The Civil Aviation Administration of Indonesia (DGCA) is considering obtaining operational certification from DGCA in India and copying similar rules to operate there. Now we have a conversation with Malaysia, which will increase the scope of our business. However, our first The launch will come from India itself,” Chakravati said.
To be sure, air taxis have been an idea for some time. Eight years ago, the Dutch company Pal-V International BV showed off the world’s first commercial “flying car” ready for production. In the same year, mobile company Uber Inc. and NASA signed a “space law” to develop an unmanned air traffic management system for air taxis.
Read also | India’s aviation sector is flying high altitudes: Economic Investigation
The Multilateral Smart World Economic Forum’s “Aviation” program published a report on November 13, saying that in 2023 only Bengaluru lost $2.3 billion in economic value in the metropolis congestion alone, which could reduce autonomous air mobility.
India’s DGCA has proposed providing a legal framework for air taxis, including certification of approved air taxis operators.
“Currently, DGCA is exploring the certification foundation with us. Once we have established this certification foundation, we will get the same information from other aviation agencies around the world to show them our standards and there are a lot of them in this area The government’s understanding of the government,” Chakravarthy added. These complications, by the end of 2027, can be expected that operations will also begin commercially in other parts of the world. ”
Unlock the city’s congestion
Although there are not many players in the domestic air taxi market yet, Bangalore-based Sarla Aviation is a major competitor to Eplane Co..
In November, Sarla raised $10 million in Series A funding from venture capital firm Accel. Earlier last April, UK-based Archer Aviation signed a deal with Interglobe Aviation, the promoter of airline Indigo, to provide 300 air taxis for city-to-train commuters.
Vishesh Rajaram, managing partner at Speciale Invest, one of Eplane Co’s investors, told Mint The Venture Capital “has led three rounds of Eplane Co and is likely to be part of the future round.”
“This is an area with great prospects. The prospect of DGCA for electric taxis is real, and if we really want to solve the transportation problem in India, then this door has to be opened,” Rajaram said.
“Once transportation begins, trade will flourish – we have seen that with the discovery of oil and the emergence of transportation speeds a few years ago. Metro rail transport, while effective, is not the fastest way to travel, and air taxis It may be the answer to the question of urban congestion.”
Read also | Traffic penalties based on income levels are both effective and fair
