Posted on 04/03/2012 7:50:39 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
We've screamed for them for years. We've joked about it. We've featured them in auto insurance commercials. IBM was using the idea in their advertisements well over a decade ago. But now the flying cars are here.
Flying cars aren't just science fiction anymore.
Woburn, Mass.-based Terrafugia Inc. said Monday that its prototype flying car has completed its first flight, bringing the company closer to its goal of selling the flying car within the next year. The vehicle — dubbed the Transition — has two seats, four wheels and wings that fold up so it can be driven like a car. Last month, it flew at 1,400 feet for eight minutes.
Here's what it looks like in non-flying mode. It's not the size of your Hummer and you won't be taking the whole family out to Golden Corral, but it's still pretty cool.
The one big problem with the era of flying cars is that the fishbowl theory won’t work any more. One of the early assumptions in air travel was that the sky was so gosh darn big and there were so few planes, that the odds of running into each other were pretty low. That changed over time, but we also developed much better radar and air traffic control systems. Those are in place to track big planes at high altitudes, though. The tree-top skimmers still frequently rely on far more casual controls and the honor system. What happens if there are thousands of these taking wing over suburban communities?
Ah, never mind. We’re finally going to have flying cars. And at long last, we can answer this guy’s question.
There’s is no way anyone is going to be able to operate this thing unless they are issued an FAA pilot’s certificate.
I want one.
Nice, but I want one of these! The ATRAGON flying battleship/submarine!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057215/
Exactly. They will need an FAA license and a regular drivers license.
it looks more like a rolling airplane.
What’s the penalty for flying and texting?
I believe they managed something like 7 mins at 1400 feet. This ain’t going to sell much and sure isn’t the answer to a commute
It’s only 29 grand more than what it cost to build a Chevy Volt. $279 grand for the flying car, $250,000 cost to build a Volt.
Death.
Problem is that this is not a car but a plane with folding wings. But being able to move the thing on the streets and being able to store it in a garage instead of a hanger are distinct advantages.
There’s enough idiots on the road, I don’t want them OVER my house.
Meh. This one is a heck of a lot better and looks to be considerably more fun and with greater range:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2867615/posts
It still requires a pilots license although it will qualify to be flown with a sport pilots license.
Personally for less than twice the price I will take a lansair 4P, presurised 4 place, 29,000 service ceiling, 335 miles an hour cruise, and a 1,400 mile range!
To quote the late Robert Anson Heinlein, "Stupidity is the only universal capital crime. The sentence is automatic, and is carried out without mercy or pity. There is no appeal," so, one could safely assume, death...
the infowarrior
The company is out of Woburn,Mass. I had jury duty today in Woburn,Mass. I like to think I had a little part to play in the whole thing.
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