On October 15th, the 2026 Low altitude Economic Industry Development Conference opened in Zigong. The conference focuses on airspace management, construction of general airports and vertical takeoff and landing sites, public air routes, intelligent networking systems, medium and large unmanned aerial vehicles, electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, as well as low altitude security, logistics, tourism, emergency, medical distribution and other scenarios for deployment. For the non-ferrous industry chain, the true value of the low altitude economy lies not in the short-term conceptual heat, but in its ability to push aviation grade metals such as aluminum and titanium from “traditional high-end demand” to “large-scale manufacturing demand”.
The first requirement for materials for low altitude aircraft is lightweight and high specific strength. eVTOL、 Aluminum alloys are extensively used in the fuselage frame, arms, main beams, landing gear, battery compartment, fasteners, and other parts of medium and large unmanned aerial vehicles and general aviation aircraft. Among them, the 7-series high-strength aluminum alloy has become an important choice for the main load-bearing structure due to its fatigue resistance and weight reduction advantages; Titanium alloy is more commonly used in high-temperature, high stress, and high safety redundant parts. This means that the low altitude economy is not driving ordinary building aluminum profiles, but rather high value-added products such as aviation grade plates, forgings, extruded profiles, precision titanium rods, and titanium forgings.
From a rhythm perspective, demand release will not be achieved overnight. There is still a high proportion of low altitude economic orders that belong to intention orders. The certification of complete aircraft airworthiness, bulk delivery, and scenario commercialization all require time. The material side is truly entering a stable and high-volume stage, and it is more likely to be gradually realized in 2027-2028 with the certification of airworthiness and the landing of mass-produced aircraft models. But there are already signals of early layout in the industry: the competition between top aluminum and titanium companies in aviation grade alloys, precision machining, and delivery cycles is accelerating, and enterprises with aviation certification, stable batch consistency, and supporting research and development capabilities will enter the supply chain of complete machine factories faster.
What is more worth tracking is that the low altitude economy has a “layered feature” in driving demand for metals. Aluminum alloy has the widest range of benefits and more obvious quantity elasticity. The amount of titanium alloy monomer is relatively limited, but it has high value and strong certification barriers; Magnesium alloys, rare earth permanent magnets, copper, nickel based high-temperature alloys, etc. will also form increments in lightweighting, motors, wiring harnesses, and power systems. Therefore, it cannot be simply understood as “all colored varieties erupting simultaneously”, but attention should be paid to the structural premium brought about by the migration of materials from industrial general grade to aviation grade.
The focus of follow-up observation should be on three aspects: first, whether the airworthiness certification of the whole machine factory and the pace of mass production have been substantially promoted. Secondly, whether aviation grade aluminum titanium material orders have shifted from intention to binding contracts. The third is whether the supply of high-end domestic brands can match the strict requirements of aircraft for fatigue life, impurity control, and batch stability. The long-term logic of low altitude economy is established, but the pricing mainline of the non-ferrous end will ultimately fall on “certification barriers, delivery capabilities, and high-end production capacity”.
Post time: Oct-22-2026