Great news for anyone
who has ever dreamed of owning a Delorian, Blade Runner’s Spinners, or even the
car from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: the first test flights for a flying car have
been approved.
The US Federal Aviation
Administration has approved test flights for Terrafugia’s TF-X cart.
A two-foot-long
autonomous drone version of will take to the skies in the coming months.
The full-size model has
a top speed of 200 mph and can fly for 500 miles in one journey. It is a
four-seat, hybrid electric semi-autonomous vehicle, designed so an average
driver can use it without undergoing pilot training. The driver can input a
destination into the computer and the car will be under autopilot controls.
The test version can
fly up to 121 meters at a maximum speed of 100mph. It must remain in constant
communication with the FAA during its flight.
Terrafugia, a company
founded by MIT aerospace engineers, will use the test flights to further
develop the flying car’s design. It will examine the hover capabilities and
gather data.
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