Research on the Resilience of Low‑Altitude Economy Industrial Chain and Supply Chain, Independent Controllability of Key Components and Bottleneck Breakthrough
Authors: Buckhouse Intelligent Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Buckhouse Research Institute of Low‑Altitude Economy, Buckhouse Global Low‑Altitude Economy Industry Network, Buckhouse China Low‑Altitude Economy Industry Network, Buckhouse International Low‑Altitude Economy Cooperation Network, Buckhouse Low‑Altitude Manufacturing Platform, Buckhouse Low‑Altitude Flight Platform, Buckhouse Low‑Altitude Support Platform, Buckhouse Low‑Altitude Infrastructure Platform, Buckhouse Low‑Altitude Industry Supporting Platform, Buckhouse Low‑Altitude Cross‑border Integration Platform
Abstract
As a strategic emerging industry prioritized by China, the low‑altitude economy serves as a vital carrier for fostering new‑quality productive forces and building a modern three‑dimensional transportation system. Integrating multiple industrial sectors including aviation manufacturing, new energy, electronic information, communication networks and urban operation, it has formed a complex five‑tier industrial chain covering materials and components, core systems, complete‑machine integration, R&D and verification, as well as operation support. With the accelerated pilot deployment of manned electric vertical take‑off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, large‑cargo delivery UAVs, low‑altitude urban commuting, emergency rescue and low‑altitude logistics, the industry scale keeps expanding at a high speed. Nevertheless, the structural contradiction of “strong complete‑machine sector yet weak fundamental sector” in the industrial chain has become increasingly prominent. Upstream key components, aviation‑grade materials, industrial simulation software and high‑credible airborne software and hardware are highly dependent on external sources. Existing breakpoints, vulnerabilities and risk points in supply chains constrain the industry from moving beyond demonstration pilots toward large‑scale commercial operation.
Based on the global competition landscape of the low‑altitude industry, this report systematically analyzes the current status of China’s low‑altitude economy industrial chain and supply chain. It identifies bottlenecks in power systems, flight control and avionics, perception sensors, high‑end composite materials, fundamental industrial software and airworthiness verification systems, and analyzes the internal mechanisms behind supply‑chain resilience risks. Centering on pathways to realize independent controllability of key components, this report puts forward countermeasures for bottleneck breakthroughs from dimensions including technological research, industrial ecosystem development, supply‑chain risk governance, formulation of standards and airworthiness systems, industry‑university‑research‑application collaboration, and coordinated development of domestic and international dual circulation. It provides references for policy formulation, corporate strategic planning and investment judgment.
Keywords: Low‑altitude Economy; Industrial and Supply Chain Resilience; Key Components; Independent Controllability; eVTOL; Bottleneck Breakthrough
Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1 Research Background
The global low‑altitude industry is at an intersection of technological iteration and commercial explosion. European and American countries are accelerating the layout of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) systems, advancing eVTOL airworthiness certification, low‑altitude airspace reform and demonstration operations of aircraft, and regarding the low‑altitude sector as a new high ground for competition in the future aviation industry. In China, the low‑altitude economy has been elevated to a national strategy. The National Development and Reform Commission has set up the Department of Low‑Altitude Economy Development. The newly revised Civil Aviation Law of the People’s Republic of China came into force in July 2026 with special provisions for low‑altitude economy development. Policy documents such as Guidelines for the Construction of Low‑Altitude Economy Standard System (2025 Edition) and Statistical Classification of Low‑Altitude Economy and Its Core Industries (Trial) have been issued successively, establishing a top‑level institutional framework. Cities across the country have launched intensive low‑altitude flight pilots, continuously improving the institutional environment for industrial development.
In terms of market scale, data from CCID Consulting shows that China’s low‑altitude economy market reached RMB 505.95 billion in 2023, RMB 670.25 billion in 2024, and the full‑industrial‑chain market size exceeded RMB 1.5 trillion in 2025. The number of registered UAVs nationwide stood at 3.287 million, and domestic market entities related to low‑altitude economy exceeded 120 000. Consumer‑grade and small‑and‑medium‑sized industrial UAVs have achieved world‑leading complete‑machine manufacturing capacity, with products exported to most regions across the globe. Beneath industrial prosperity, however, structural bottlenecks in the industrial chain have emerged. While complete‑machine integration enjoys sufficient production capacity, supply capacity for underlying fundamental components, high‑reliability aviation‑grade parts and simulation‑verification tool software remains inadequate. Maturity of some core domestic links is limited to samples and prototypes, falling far short of stable mass supply complying with aviation airworthiness standards. “Being flyable does not equate to safe and large‑scale commercial application” has become a common industry pain point.
Against shifting geopolitical conditions worldwide, trade barriers targeting high‑end aviation components, special‑purpose materials and industrial software have intensified, continuously raising risks of supply‑chain disruptions. Once the supply of upstream key components fluctuates, impacts will propagate directly to complete‑machine manufacturers, delaying commercialization of manned eVTOL aircraft and large‑cargo UAVs. Strengthening the resilience of the low‑altitude‑economy industrial and supply chain, advancing independent controllability of key components and addressing industrial bottlenecks constitute practical necessities for safeguarding industrial security as well as intrinsic requirements for high‑quality and sustainable development of China’s low‑altitude economy.
1.2 Research Significance
Theoretically, existing domestic research on the low‑altitude economy mostly focuses on application scenarios, airspace management, business models and policy interpretation. In‑depth systematic studies targeting industrial‑supply‑chain resilience and bottlenecks of key components remain relatively limited. This report clarifies the five‑tier structure of the low‑altitude industrial chain, distinguishes links with established competitive advantages, links with available prototypes yet insufficient airworthiness compliance, and links with high external dependence. It enriches the theoretical research framework for low‑altitude‑industry supply‑chain security, and clarifies that independent controllability does not mean total rejection of global cooperation, but rather building a modern supply chain featuring safety redundancy, diversified backups and manageable risks.
Practically, this report sorts out bottlenecks in sub‑sectors including power systems, avionics and flight control, sensors and composite materials, analyzes risk sources and proposes actionable pathways for breakthroughs. For governments, it offers references for industrial support policies, major special‑project layout and standard‑system construction. For industrial enterprises, it helps complete‑machine manufacturers identify supply‑chain risk points and guides component suppliers to iterate products oriented toward airworthiness compliance and engineering‑oriented development. For research institutions, it identifies priority directions for industry‑university‑research collaboration, promoting transformation of laboratory‑based technological achievements toward mass‑scale industrial application.
1.3 Research Scope and Methodology
This report covers the broad‑sense low‑altitude‑economy industrial chain. Research subjects include small‑and‑medium‑sized industrial UAVs, large‑cargo UAVs and manned eVTOL aircraft, covering both consumer‑grade UAVs and manned aircraft for urban air mobility. It focuses on upstream materials and components, core parts and airborne software‑hardware systems, addresses mid‑stream complete‑machine assembly, and extends to R&D verification, airworthiness testing, infrastructure and operation support.
Multiple research methods are adopted: literature analysis sorting out national policy documents, public statistics released by CAAC and MIIT, and industrial reports from think tanks and securities institutions; industrial investigation and analysis based on exhibitor statistics from domestic low‑altitude‑economy expos to map market‑entity distribution across links; comparative analysis comparing technical indicators, localization rates and airworthiness‑certification progress of domestic and overseas key components; risk‑tracing method identifying vulnerable supply‑chain links and distinguishing four categories of bottlenecks: technical bottlenecks, engineering‑oriented bottlenecks, ecological bottlenecks and standard‑airworthiness bottlenecks.
1.4 Report Framework
Chapter 1 serves as the introduction. Chapter 2 outlines the overall landscape of China’s low‑altitude‑economy industrial and supply chain, defines industrial‑chain tiers and analyzes domestic competitive advantages. Chapter 3 analyzes major resilience risks facing the supply chain. Chapter 4 conducts in‑depth decomposition of bottlenecks in key components, dissecting technical gaps in power systems, flight‑control‑avionics systems, perception sensors, high‑end composite materials, fundamental industrial software and airborne operating systems. Chapter 5 explores multiple underlying causes for such bottlenecks. Chapter 6 puts forward systematic countermeasures to improve supply‑chain resilience and achieve bottleneck breakthroughs. Chapter 7 presents development prospects. Data sources and disclaimer are attached at the end.
Chapter 2 Overall Landscape of China’s Low‑Altitude‑Economy Industrial and Supply Chain
The low‑altitude‑economy industrial chain forms a distinct five‑tier pyramid structure from bottom to top: fundamental‑material‑and‑component layer, core‑system‑and‑component layer, complete‑machine‑design‑and‑assembly layer, digital‑R&D‑and‑airworthiness‑verification layer, and operation‑and‑support‑service layer. Closer to fundamental bottom‑tier links, fewer enterprises exist, technical barriers grow higher, and independent controllability becomes more difficult, resulting in a “top‑heavy, bottom‑light” industrial structure.
The first tier covers fundamental materials and components: high‑end carbon fiber and matching resin matrices, special aviation‑grade aluminum alloys, high‑strength composite materials, aviation‑grade chips, FPGA processors, inertial devices, high‑precision MEMS components, special connectors and aviation bearings. These constitute the cornerstone of the whole industry and represent links with the highest external dependence at present.
The second tier includes core power and avionics systems: electric‑propulsion systems (aviation‑grade motors, electric controllers), aviation power batteries and BMS, range extenders, heavy‑oil piston engines, turboprop engines; flight‑control computers, integrated airborne avionics, inertial navigation IMUs, satellite‑navigation receiving units, electromechanical actuators and high‑voltage power‑distribution systems. Serving as the “heart” and “brain” of aircraft, they directly determine safety, payload, endurance and reliability performance.
The third tier covers complete‑machine design and assembly: consumer‑grade UAVs, industrial inspection and plant‑protection UAVs, large‑cargo UAVs and manned eVTOL aircraft. China boasts global competitiveness in small‑and‑medium‑sized UAV complete‑machines, with strong capabilities in design, structural manufacturing, assembly processes and cost control. Multiple world‑leading complete‑machine enterprises have emerged whose products are widely exported overseas. Nevertheless, manned eVTOL aircraft are still undergoing airworthiness assessment, and large‑scale mass‑production capacity has not been fully unlocked.
The fourth tier is the easily‑overlooked “hidden foundation”: multi‑physics‑field CAE simulation software, structural‑design CAD, PLM for product lifecycle management, MBSE aviation industrial software for model‑based system engineering; high‑credible real‑time airborne operating systems and compiler toolchains; aircraft simulation testing, environmental testing, airworthiness inspection and database engineering systems. This tier determines iteration efficiency of component design and is indispensable for meeting aviation‑safety standards, yet faces prominent domestic bottlenecks.
The fifth tier covers operation and continuous support services: vertiport low‑altitude take‑off‑and‑landing infrastructure, low‑altitude communication‑navigation‑surveillance networks, low‑altitude meteorological‑sensing networks, aircraft maintenance and repair, spare‑parts supply chains, low‑altitude insurance, personnel training, air‑traffic‑scheduling platforms and scenario‑based application services. As supporting systems for commercial‑industrial‑rollout, relevant domestic infrastructure is under accelerated construction.
According to statistics from the 2026 International Low‑Altitude Economy Expo, among over 400 exhibiting institutions, complete‑machine manufacturers account for merely 10 %; core‑system enterprises 15 %; material‑and‑component enterprises 37 %; industrial‑software and inspection‑verification service providers less than 7 %; operation‑and‑infrastructure enterprises 20 %; foreign‑funded and joint‑venture entities 12 %. The number of market participants in fundamental bottom‑tier links is notably small, reflecting weak industrial supply capacity.
2.1 Established Competitive Advantages of China’s Low‑Altitude Industrial Chain
First, China’s small‑and‑medium‑sized UAV complete‑machine manufacturing enjoys global competitiveness. Consumer‑grade, plant‑protection and inspection‑oriented industrial UAVs have achieved large‑scale mass production. Capabilities for complete‑machine design, integration and mission‑payload R&D are mature with sophisticated cost‑control systems, securing high global market share and supporting well‑established domestic supporting supply chains.
Second, the domestic new‑energy industrial base empowers low‑altitude power links. Supported by China’s complete lithium‑battery industrial chain, UAV lithium‑ion battery cells and BMS systems have achieved large‑scale localization. The mature Beidou satellite‑navigation system enables wide deployment of airborne Beidou positioning modules across various low‑altitude aircraft, realizing independent and controllable positioning‑navigation fundamentals. The large‑scale general‑purpose‑motor industry provides abundant supplies of small‑and‑medium‑sized civilian motors to fuel iteration of electric‑propulsion systems.
Third, enormous domestic‑market demand drives industrial iteration. China features vast territory with abundant scenarios including agricultural plant protection, power‑grid inspection, mapping and surveying, emergency disaster relief, urban governance, cultural‑tourism sightseeing and logistics distribution. Massive application scenarios drive continuous product iteration by complete‑machine and component enterprises, bringing huge local‑market dividends.
Fourth, policy frameworks keep improving. A complete support chain has taken shape covering top‑level legislation, statistical classification, standard guidelines and local‑level pilots. Implementation of the revised Civil Aviation Law, advancement of classified airspace management, release of special low‑altitude‑economy support policies across provinces and municipalities, and accelerated construction of industrial parks and flight‑test bases provide institutional guarantees for industrial growth.
2.2 Global Supply‑chain Landscape of the Low‑Altitude Industry
After decades of accumulation, European and American aviation industries have built profound strengths in aviation‑grade components, high‑reliability inertial devices, aviation multi‑disciplinary simulation software, aviation real‑time operating systems and high‑end composite‑material prepregs, nurturing specialized aviation suppliers. Europe and the United States have taken the lead in exploring eVTOL airworthiness rules and accumulated rich experience in manned‑aircraft system engineering. However, they also face weaknesses: insufficient production capacity for consumer‑grade UAV complete‑machines, high manufacturing costs, and lack of complete supporting clusters for electronics and new‑energy industries comparable to China’s.
Global low‑altitude supply chains are deeply globalized, and cross‑border procurement of aircraft components represents common industry practice. Independent controllability does not equate to full domestic substitution. Its core objective is to achieve accessible, backup‑enabled and risk‑isolable supply for key links, avoiding full‑industrial‑chain shutdown caused by single‑point supply disruptions, and fostering a supply‑chain pattern featuring mutual reinforcement of domestic and international dual circulation.
Chapter 3 Major Resilience Risks for the Low‑Altitude‑Economy Industrial and Supply Chain
Supply‑chain resilience refers to the comprehensive capacity of an industrial chain to withstand shocks, recover rapidly and adjust dynamically amid external disruptions, supply perturbations and technological blockades. At present, China’s low‑altitude‑economy supply chain faces four major categories of risks.
3.1 Risk of Supply‑chain Disruption for Key Components
For some high‑reliability aviation‑grade components, China has only developed samples and prototypes, without mass‑produced products certified for airworthiness. Manned eVTOL imposes far stricter fault‑tolerance requirements on components than consumer‑grade UAVs, and consumer‑electronic‑grade components cannot be directly transplanted to manned‑aviation scenarios. Should overseas regulatory restrictions block procurement channels for certain FPGAs, high‑grade inertial‑measurement units, special aviation bearings and high‑end simulation software, R&D and airworthiness‑promotion progress for large‑cargo UAVs and manned eVTOL would be directly hampered.
Objective distinction shall be made: localisation of most components for ordinary consumer‑grade UAVs is mature. For manned aircraft and large‑payload long‑endurance industrial aircraft, nevertheless, aviation‑grade components still exhibit prominent supply bottlenecks, and the two scenarios must not be conflated. Statistics indicate that the overall localization rate of high‑end core components for the low‑altitude economy remains below 30 %, while certain high‑end electric‑propulsion systems record external dependence exceeding 70 %. Supply‑chain risks concentrate on high‑end manned‑aviation scenarios, which constitute key concerns for future industrial security.
3.2 Structural Risks: Mature Prototypes yet Insufficient Engineering‑oriented and Airworthiness‑oriented Capabilities
Numerous domestic research institutes and technology enterprises can develop component prototypes whose laboratory‑tested performance matches international benchmarks. However, they lack tens‑of‑thousands‑of‑hours‑level reliability verification, environmental‑aging testing and fault‑database accumulation required by aviation‑industry strict requirements for consistency, stability and traceability. Laboratory prototypes are not equivalent to mass‑produced commercial goods. Satisfactory performance of individual samples cannot guarantee stable performance across every unit in mass production. Engineering‑oriented bottlenecks constitute the core reason why many domestic components fail to pass airworthiness assessment. Many components feature “available prototypes yet no commercial products; proven technologies yet no mass‑scale output”. Consequently, complete‑machine manufacturers for manned‑aircraft development still tend to adopt mature overseas components with long‑term airworthiness‑validation records.
3.3 Chain‑fragmentation Risks Arising from Insufficient Industrial‑chain Collaboration
Collaboration remains inadequate among complete‑machine manufacturers, component suppliers, research institutes and airworthiness authorities. Concerned about project‑schedule risks, complete‑machine enterprises prefer proven imported components and show limited willingness to trial‑deploy and iterate domestic alternatives. Component enterprises lack real‑world operating‑condition test data from complete aircraft, hindering optimisation against actual flight scenarios. Laboratory‑based technological achievements from research institutions lack intermediate‑test transformation platforms tailored for aviation scenarios, blocking technology commercialisation pathways. Airworthiness verification entails long cycles and high costs unaffordable for most small‑and‑medium‑sized component enterprises. As a result, chains linking technology, manufacturing, application and verification become fragmented, and a collaborative industrial ecosystem is yet to fully take shape.
Meanwhile, integration between large, medium‑sized and small enterprises along the industrial chain remains insufficient. Upstream specialised‑new component enterprises are generally small‑scale with limited R&D budgets. Given long cycles, high investment requirements and long return‑on‑investment timelines for aviation‑component R&D, testing and airworthiness certification, capital‑market willingness to invest is restrained, slowing iteration of upstream links.
3.4 Incomplete Standards and Supply‑chain Governance Systems
The low‑altitude economy represents an emerging cross‑cutting industry. Many sub‑sector standards for aviation‑grade components are still under formulation, and unified industry evaluation benchmarks are absent for some domestic components. Supply‑chain risk‑early‑warning and backup‑supplier‑cultivation mechanisms are not widely adopted. Most complete‑machine‑manufacturers manage supply chains following traditional consumer‑electronics models, without multi‑source‑backup mechanisms for key components. Enterprises show uneven awareness of supply‑chain risks and insufficient assessment of potential regulatory risks associated with imported components.
Furthermore, global airworthiness‑standard discrepancies persist. Even after obtaining domestic airworthiness certification, domestic components targeting overseas markets still need alignment with European and American airworthiness systems, raising comprehensive costs for domestic‑component exports.
Chapter 4 In‑depth Analysis of Bottlenecks in Low‑Altitude‑economy Key Components
This chapter sorts out technical status, localisation levels and existing bottlenecks across six segments: power systems, flight‑control‑avionics systems, perception sensors, high‑end composite materials, industrial‑simulation and fundamental software, and airborne operating systems.
4.1 Bottlenecks in Power‑system Segment
Known as the heart of low‑altitude aircraft, power systems fall into three categories: electric‑propulsion systems (motors and electric controllers), aviation power‑battery systems and fuel‑power systems.
First, aviation‑grade distributed electric‑propulsion systems. Localisation of motors and electric controllers for small‑consumer‑grade UAVs is mature. However, prominent gaps persist in high‑power‑density, high‑safety‑redundancy aviation‑grade motors, high‑voltage electric controllers and power‑electronic devices for...........................................
