AutoFlight carried out the demonstration on October 31 and repeated it on November 1 at its test site on Bailian Lake in Kunshan, eastern China, and announced the result on November 5. The formation was led by a single V5000 Matrix, which the company classes as a 5-ton eVTOL, with four 2-ton machines behind it: V2000CG CarryAll cargo aircraft and the V2000CGF, a firefighting variant of the same design. According to AutoFlight, the group stayed in formation for 47 minutes, the lead aircraft covered more than 133 km, and the whole flight was autonomous with no manual intervention. AutoFlight describes it as a world first; that label is the company's own.
Flying identical aircraft together is one problem; flying machines of different weights and missions together is another, because a heavier leader and lighter followers respond differently to speed changes and gusts. AutoFlight said, as quoted by Aviation International News, that "coordinating aircraft of different sizes and mission requires precise route planning, flight control, communication, and safety management." Strong winds blew across the site on November 1, yet the company says all five aircraft held steady and kept safe separation both side to side and in altitude. The flight builds on a three-aircraft formation the company flew in May 2026.
Spectators on the shore included a group of Stanford Executive Program alumni along with industry visitors, customers and partners. The visit also took in Sunship, a floating take-off and landing platform AutoFlight is building on Dianshan Lake to connect its aircraft with travel by water.
The V2000CG flying in the group has already been granted type, production and airworthiness approvals by China's civil aviation regulator. AutoFlight frames the formation work as groundwork for low-altitude transport networks that connect trunk, regional and last-mile routes, where aircraft of different payloads and roles split the work between them.
The company is also courting buyers abroad. Indonesia's WhiteSky Aviation has signed an agreement covering 60 AutoFlight aircraft, and, according to an AutoFlight representative interviewed by Jiemian News, Falcon Aviation Services of the UAE placed an order for 50 aircraft in 2025. AutoFlight also made its Canton Fair debut in October, showing models of the CarryAll cargo and firefighting versions to trade visitors.
For logistics operators, island and remote-area carriers, and emergency agencies, the demonstration shows Chinese heavy-lift uncrewed aircraft moving from single-aircraft trials toward coordinated fleet operations. The flights took place over AutoFlight's own test site rather than in shared airspace, so buyers should still check local certification routes, payload needs and ground infrastructure before planning a fleet. If you want to compare Chinese cargo eVTOL and large-payload drone options or arrange supplier introductions, our team can help.