Flying car wins airworthiness certification

originally posted by: gortex
a reply to: lostbook

Too much like a plane for my liking , the Jetson ONE is more to my taste.

Yup, I'll take one.



The air displacement might piss off the neighbours and pets but too bad.

a reply to: lostbook

Imagine needing to specify that a manned aircraft requires a pilot's license because people tend to forget that's a thing.

a reply to: LABTECH767

Would make a great thread.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: BernnieJGato
Still you gonna want to stop and remove the wings every time you land so you can go into a parking lot or drive through.

For people who want this type of vehicle it won't be an issue. Private planes still require prep work prior to departure and adding/removing the wings isn't any more challenging than that, it's probably less so.

Dead wrong. Source: pilot/aviation for 18 years. Removing wings is a humongous PITA and putting them back on is even worse. We used to do that at the glider field, people would take their sailplanes out of their trailers and have to put the wings on before every day of soaring. It was worth it for them though as you said, they did not have a problem with it, but it was intense and often required a small team to make it quick enough.

Preflight inspections and "prep work" of our small planes never involves any large assembly or disassembly and is done in a matter of minutes, up to an hour for the most complex (think multi engine or amphibious etc) smaller aircraft. The hardest part is climbing up the wings to check the fuel on certain high-wings (think cessna-configuration with the wings on top of the fuselage).

Now, if they made it extremely easy to assemble and disassemble the flying car (aka the wings), less than 20 minutes and a 1 person job, no big deal, but it still needs a standard preflight inspection added to that. So either way, it's a pain.

But... it's still very cool that they were successful in certifying a "roadable aircraft" (which is what this is, not so much a flying car).

a reply to: servovenford

These aren't gliders and are looking to certify in a different manner. Source: We're working with LuftCar.

originally posted by: TzarChasm
a reply to: lostbook

Imagine needing to specify that a manned aircraft requires a pilot's license because people tend to forget that's a thing.

True.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

I didn't know that the wings are removable. Yikes!

a reply to: MykeNukem

The Jetson1 vehicle is cool. I'll wait for the ductless flying cars that don't use fans for lift.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

I was in a show band and when he died....never did "Rocky Mountain High" again.....

Message:
"Oh honey? Put up my guitar...I'ma gonna take lawn mowers n ironing boards...n other stuff...n go flying in the mounta----(crickets)."

originally posted by: Xcalibur254
It will be interesting to see if this is finally the one that makes flying cars a thing.

What most people don't know is that we've technically had flying cars almost as long as we've had planes. The first successful flying car was produced in 1917.

The Taylor Aerocar, probably the most commercially successful flying car, was first produced in 1949 and received CAA certification in 1956. It almost went into large-scale production but the manufacturer said they would need 500 orders first. In the end, Taylor was only able to secure ~250 orders and the plans were scrapped. Only 6 ended up getting produced, with one of them still flying as of 2008.

Yes, this is the very first one to be certified air worthy by a certification agency. I think the floodgates will be opened by the competition now.

originally posted by: TzarChasm
a reply to: lostbook

Imagine needing to specify that a manned aircraft requires a pilot's license because people tend to forget that's a thing.

There are plenty of manned aircraft that can be operated without a pilot's license.
Popular Mechanics

originally posted by: gortex
a reply to: lostbook

Too much like a plane for my liking , the Jetson ONE is more to my taste.

And me as well, looks like something I would have daydreamed about as a kid.

a reply to: gortex

Jetson one is the way to go but it has it's drawbacks.

If your a big fella, or a fatty your out of luck. Max pilot weight is 210 lbs.
Flight time is 20 mins.
Charging time depending on input voltage,1 hr@ 220v 2hrs@120v

If they can over come these, it's possibly the best design out there.

Jetson One specs,
Welcome to the Future Your personal aircraft in aluminium and carbon fibre, powered with eight powerful electric motors.

There's a longish standing thread over on the aviation forum on the 'flying cars' for those who want to know more.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

a reply to: lostbook

The price for individual aircraft (flying cars) is about $700,000 (approximately). The price of the AirCar hasn't been revealed yet, but it's unlikely to cost much less than that amount.
However, there is no VTOL function and a pilot's certificate is required. That is, in order to fly on it, you have to go to the nearest airport. Not very comfortable.
What are the alternatives?
Aero NG 5 Bristell single-engine aircraft - $100,000 (cheaper models available) www.globalplanesearch.com...
Hangar 80ft x 80ft - $50,000
thecostguys.com...
And you have $550,000 left to buy the car.
Decide what is best for you...

I like that one.

And this guy (AS SEEN HERE) still has designs from the 70s and 80s that he says the FAA won't certify even though the airframe is solid.