- Policy covers 12 test flights of a hydrogen-powered drone before airworthiness certification
- Product addresses a long-standing insurance gap as China’s low-altitude economy gathers pace
Chinese insurer PICC has issued the country’s first insurance policy tailored specifically for research and test flights of low-altitude aircraft, providing coverage for 12 trial flights of a hydrogen-powered drone and addressing a key gap in insurance protection for next-generation aircraft under development.
Issued by PICC Property & Casualty Insurance’s Zhejiang branch, the policy covers the FC100-YH hydrogen-powered drone project developed by Hangzhou Hechengyu Aviation Service Co., Ltd. (杭州禾呈羽航空服务有限公司), marking the country’s first dedicated insurance product for scientific test flights of emerging low-altitude aircraft.
Filling the gap
The rollout, announced on June 30, comes as Chinese developers accelerate work on drones, eVTOL aircraft and other next-generation aircraft, many of which remain in the prototype and certification stages.
These aircraft typically lack airworthiness certification, operate under complex test conditions and face elevated technical risks that conventional drone insurance policies do not cover.
PICC said it designed the policy around the FC100-YH’s hydrogen fuel-cell propulsion system and test-flight procedures, assessing operational risks across different airspace scenarios to provide comprehensive protection before certification.
The FC100-YH is based on FC100, a cargo drone platform originally developed by DJI, but replaces the original propulsion system with a hydrogen fuel-cell powertrain, enabling hydrogen-powered flight.
An emerging pillar industry
China has elevated the low-altitude economy in its annual government work report for three consecutive years, gradually raising the sector’s strategic importance from a new growth driver to an emerging pillar industry.
Zhejiang has become one of the country’s most active provinces for insurance innovation in the sector.
Earlier, China Pacific Property Insurance introduced a cyber insurance product covering drone flight-control systems against network attacks, as well as a digital supervision model that links insurance coverage with real-time flight monitoring.
In early June, CoolFly (酷飞飞行器), a Hangzhou-based eVTOL startup, secured China’s first comprehensive insurance policy for its ultralight aircraft models from China Pacific Property Insurance and PICC Property and Casualty Co., two of the nation’s largest insurers.
Growing integration
PICC’s Zhejiang branch said it will continue developing insurance and risk-management products covering aircraft research and testing, commercial operations, application scenarios and cybersecurity.
The aim is to support the commercialization of emerging aviation technologies.
The new policy provides a financial safety net for aircraft developers as prototypes advance toward commercial products, underscoring the growing integration of finance, technological innovation and China’s rapidly expanding low-altitude economy.
