Posted on 06/30/2010 10:01:12 AM PDT by OneVike
We have all heard about the idea of flying cars for years. The popular cartoon "The Jetsons" made a whole generation of kids grow up thinking about robots as maids and flying cars in the future. Well, a few Japanese companies have been working hard on getting robots that can entertain men and and there has been more then a few inventors that have toyed with creating a car fly. Now we have the Terrafugia company that has invented the Transition ® Roadable Aircraft, or "Flying Car". They have even received approval from the FAA to fly their Transition.
Categorized as a Light Sport Aircraft, the Transition® requires a Sport Pilot certificate to fly. It is a two-seat aircraft designed to take off and land at local airports and drive on any road. Transforming from plane to car takes the pilot less than 30 seconds. The Transition® will cruise up to 450 miles at over 115 mph, will drive at highway speeds on the road, and fits in a standard household garage. The vehicle has front wheel drive on the road and a propeller for flight. Both modes are powered by unleaded automotive gasoline. By giving pilots a convenient ground transportation option, the Transition® reduces the cost, inconvenience, and weather sensitivity of personal aviation. It also increases safety by incorporating automotive crash structures and allowing pilots to drive under bad weather. Refundable airframe reservations are currently being accepted.
Follow the link below to see ,
Why have a car? With vertical lift off, Mollar looks good to me. Also, watch the video of the Flying Car. As the car maneuvers in the driveway, the wing flaps around. It is not something you want flapping around going down the freeway (if this thing is freeway capable). Also, notice the cockpit vibration? It would not be a comfortable ride for me.
There was a great bit of juxtaposition on this back at the time of 9/11. James Fallows, famous for a lot of pointless think pieces, had just published an article in The Atlantic Monthly on how the advent of parachute recovery systems for light planes would enable everyone to be a pilot and that soon light aircraft (though not the configuration featured int his post) would be everywhere. Well the article was written some time before 9/11 and with the production lead time came out several weeks after - and the threat of airborne terrorism, was well, kinda palpable at that time. It made his forecast look foolish. As I watch the linked video I have to admit - nice idea, but practically speaking, given the porosity of our motor vehicle licensing system, do you really want to have something akin to owning/driving a car as a goal for penetration of this kind of light aircraft ownership. Anyone see a problem here?
Me too. Here's all I could afford, though.
Given the demonRAT’s propensity for taxing, anything that would give the individual the autonomy this country should guarantee, would be taxed into the ground. It is time for a paradigm shift where we take back that freedom of the marketplace which put a man on the moon and developed the IC chip.
Thanks for the link.After doing a little hunting I was able to find it.
That’s a nice little unit.
BTTT
Will it have cruise control?
I betcha don’t. Now that a prototype is operational, the next two things to do are to get it rated legal to fly and legal to drive. This will cost a fortune due to the destruction of units for collision tests. FAA certification does not come cheap, either. It is not difficult to imagine a $500,000 price tag for one of these.
Whatever it ends up costing, improperly trained pilots will very quickly demonstrate the truth of the pilot adage “Never try to land on a street.” Enough of them will collide with overhanging power lines or other objects to put the kibosh on that prospect. You’ll have to go to an airport to get airborne, and since you’re already at an airport anyway, why not just rent something that was purpose built for flying?
Then there’s the maintenance. You can drive your car upwards of 150,000 miles with 3,000 mile oil changes and an occasional alternator or serpentine belt. This is not the case with aviation. Engines have to be overhauled regularly and rebuilt every few years. The hours used to drive it as a car count towards the overhaul time.
It sounds like a really neat idea, but I think there will be less than 50 units sold.
In Dubai.
I know I’m looking forward to dodging falling burning wreckage when someone fails to yield.
You make some very good points. I do agree also that very few if any will actually ever be sold.
Talk about falling space debris.
“At $500,000 only the rich Chicago Thugs will get the stimulus money to buy these vepickles!”
I wouldn’t consider it when I can buy a Lancair P-4 for $375,000 that is presurized, cruises at 330mph with a 1,500 mile range at 28,000’.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.