Military & Aerospace Blog
Drive and fly
Anne-Francoise Pele
4/6/2012 6:04 AM EDT
This is not fiction. Flying cars are moving closer to reality.
Terrafugia’s roadable aircraft, the Transition, is one example. The production prototype of the Transition Street-Legal Airplane has completed its first flight at Plattsburgh International Airport in Plattsburgh, NY, on March 23. The same vehicle has also conducted initial drive and conversion testing.
Developed by Terrafugia, Inc., a Massachusetts-based company whose name means “escape the Earth” in Latin, the Transition is a two-seat personal aircraft capable of driving on roads and highways, parking in a single car garage, and flying with unleaded automotive fuel. Terrafugia said the anticipated base price for the Transition is $279,000.
Specifications can be found here.
In the meantime, the Dutch company PAL-V Europe NV has concluded test flights of its prototype “flying car”, PAL-V One (Personal Air and Land Vehicle), at the Gilze Rijen Airport, in the Netherlands.
The patented vehicle flies in the air like a gyrocopter with lift generated by an auto-rotating rotor and forward speed produced by a foldable push propeller on the back. On the road, it drives like a sports car. No new infrastructure is required because it uses existing roads and airstrips. The next step will be the design of the first commercial production model of the PAL-V, and first deliveries are expected in 2014, the company said.
(Click on image to access the video)
Third example: The EU-funded project myCopter will set up a second project meeting in June to discuss the progress and align research goals.
MyCopter project, led by the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Germany, aims to to create a personal air vehicle (PAV) for public transport in crowded cities. Project partners intend to test different concepts for a partially autonomous, vertical-take-off-and-landing vehicle, using computer simulations, UAVs, and a helicopter.
Research for this four-year project will include the development of new automation technologies for obstacle avoidance, path planning and formation flying, which also have excellent potential for other aerospace applications.
Additional info can be found here.
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Terrafugia’s roadable aircraft, the Transition, is one example. The production prototype of the Transition Street-Legal Airplane has completed its first flight at Plattsburgh International Airport in Plattsburgh, NY, on March 23. The same vehicle has also conducted initial drive and conversion testing.
Developed by Terrafugia, Inc., a Massachusetts-based company whose name means “escape the Earth” in Latin, the Transition is a two-seat personal aircraft capable of driving on roads and highways, parking in a single car garage, and flying with unleaded automotive fuel. Terrafugia said the anticipated base price for the Transition is $279,000.
Specifications can be found here.
(Click on image to access the video)
The patented vehicle flies in the air like a gyrocopter with lift generated by an auto-rotating rotor and forward speed produced by a foldable push propeller on the back. On the road, it drives like a sports car. No new infrastructure is required because it uses existing roads and airstrips. The next step will be the design of the first commercial production model of the PAL-V, and first deliveries are expected in 2014, the company said.
(Click on image to access the video)
Third example: The EU-funded project myCopter will set up a second project meeting in June to discuss the progress and align research goals.
MyCopter project, led by the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Germany, aims to to create a personal air vehicle (PAV) for public transport in crowded cities. Project partners intend to test different concepts for a partially autonomous, vertical-take-off-and-landing vehicle, using computer simulations, UAVs, and a helicopter.
Research for this four-year project will include the development of new automation technologies for obstacle avoidance, path planning and formation flying, which also have excellent potential for other aerospace applications.
Additional info can be found here.
--------------------------------
If you found this article to be of interest, visit Military/Aerospace Designline where you will find the latest and greatest design, technology, product, and news articles with regard to all aspects of military, defense and aerospace. And, to register to our weekly newsletter, click here.
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Rick DeMeis
4/6/2012 9:42 AM EDT
"Flying cars" have been around since the 1930s (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_car_%28aircraft%29). Modern materials and electronic technologies may make them more practical, but the basic fact remains that such a vehicle is a compromise--usually being a poor car with an acceptable airplane.
The cost factor will probably be the ultimate "decider" in whether a design is successful or just results in production of a few machines for wealthy enthusiasts. It may well be that the most efficient and cost effective solution may still be to pilot your plane and rent a car at the airport.
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James Miller
4/13/2012 3:12 PM EDT
Agreed. The hope of getting a fuel efficient vehicle that can both fly and drive will likely be a compromise for a long time to come.
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