Posted on 08/02/2007 3:47:19 PM PDT by Kevmo
A flying saucer that glides 10 feet off the ground and carries two passengers has gone into commercial production.
Moller International, based in Davis, Calif., has begun to manufacture parts for its Jetsons-like personal flying pod, the M200G Volantor.
The M200G is the size of a small car and is designed to take off and land vertically.
• Click here to see a video of an M200 prototype in action.
Company founder Paul Moller, in a press release, called the craft "the ultimate off-road vehicle" as it is able to travel over any surface.
"It's not a hovercraft, although its operation is just as easy," said Moller, a retired professor of mechanical engineering at the University of California at Davis. "You can speed over rocks, swampland, fences or log-infested waterways with ease, because you're not limited by the surface."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Lots of people think I have a good sense of humor about many things depending on the context.
Problem is,
the constant derision hereon re the topic prevents/turns off over 100 fellow FREEPERS from having a serious discussion about the topic.
I’m exceedingly tired of seeing that stolen from us by such attitudes.
Wanna see something cool? Perform a Google search on “Project Silverbug”.
Uhhhh, what planet are we on?
What stock?
To what end?
How much have you invested?
I can place my free energy machine in production tomorrow. Doesn't mean it will produce free energy. This thing is, and always has been, a pipe dream. I taught aerodynamics at Cal Poly in SLO in the late 1960's. I can tell you this thing is not about aerodynamics, it is pure thrust and a delicate balancing act. It is dynamically unstable and impossible to build in enough backup systems to be safe. He can not even build a remote controlled model of this thing that will fly.
[That’s what I wuz thinking of]
Lol, no name on it and you know how I protect my gifs!
Think of all the years they have been talking of ‘personal’ flying machines of any sort.
Can you just imagine everyone taking off into the airways? Massive chaos!
.
The “Flying Pancake” flew, was fast, short takeoff - leaped into the air
Huge props, high rake with incredibly high front landing gear
Military dropped it
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“Projuect Silverbug”
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“THC” has great footage on very early Russkie and German jets and rocket powered aircraft
—
They have had a number of highway pileups recently
Personal air-taxis would be insane
Air traffic, air controllers, etc.
Oh what fun
—
JFK Jr, - small aircraft
John Denver - experimental
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Not fer moi!
—
Those flying saucers look like a model I made of pine painted silver with a half of a vet’s soluble capsule cut down for the pilot’s dome-cockpit in easly HS
I knew then it would be unstable
Except for throwing to dogs
Or for Odd Job and Steed to adapt into their hats!
If you could actually make it go back and forth down the field with anything that resembles control enough to drive it somewhere........then maybe.
[Personal air-taxis would be insane]
Not just for them either! They would be crashing and dropping on us like flys!
My kids had a Jetsons craft toy, think is it still in the attic. Looks just like my gif - or rather, my gif looks just like it, lol.
.
Neil Armstrongs’s tests on controlling a “Moon Lander” were on a jet powered open gizmo
Armstrong almost lost it in one video - but he was a heck of a pilot
But he came thru in controlling it running out of fuel and finally finding a safe moon site to land on
[Armstrong almost lost it in one video]
I’m sure I watched some of those myself at the time but don’t recall much about them. Just the moon landing.
My one brother lived in the same subdivision as several of the astronauts back then.
I remember this company on the front of Popular Science Magazine about 20-25 years ago. It was more of a hovercraft that I think used several lawn mower engines. The prototype would get 2-3 feet off the ground. Pretty cool then and now.
That would be stock in Moller.
Ahhhh. So have you invested in it?
Moller International, based in Davis, Calif., has begun to manufacture parts for its Jetsons-like personal flying pod, the M200G Volantor.
I’ll be impressed when it can be folded up to wallet size and placed in the pocket.
I’ll invest just as soon as my 30 mil arrives from Nigeria.
Ahhhhh.
I taught aerodynamics at Cal Poly in SLO in the late 1960’s.
***Cool, that means you were one of Burt Rutan’s professors. I was accepted into the Cal Poly SLO aero program in the early 90’s but decided against moving forward because NONE of my friends who were graduating with aero degrees were getting jobs in the field. I switched to electrical.
Please note my comment in post # 1, which anticipated Freepers throwing darts at Moller.
That project was a red herring to keep the Russians thinking that the plans they stole were worthless. It worked.
Source:
“Intercetteli Senza Sparare” written originally in Italian by Renato Vesco.
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