The dream of owning a flying car and actually using it for practical purposes is now ever so close to reality. AirCar designed by Klein Vision transforms from a road vehicle to a flying plane in under three minutes, and now it has been certified to take to the skies, thanks to successfully passing the safety tests by the Slovak Transport Authority.
The two-seater car granted with the Certificate of Airworthiness clocked over 70 hours of rigorous test flights and submitted to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards to become one of the most legit flying car projects on the planet. Apparently, the AirCar has 200 takeoffs and landings on cross-country flights. That’s attributed to the innovations and safety measures in compliance with the EASA standards.
AirCar flying car
Looking more like a Nascar racer, the AirCar prototype is powered by a 140-hp 1.6-liter four-cylinder BMW combustion engine. It can propel the car both on road and in the air with ease – the latter being possible with fixed propellers. The vehicle capable of flying at a height of 8,200 feet can take off at speeds of 71.5 mph and has a cruising speed of 112 mph in the air.
On the tarmac, it can reach top speeds of 99.4 mph which will be acceptable to most commuters who want to have their own solo flying machine for the next cross county trip. The transformation from a road car to an aircraft takes around two minutes – automatically folding the wings and concealing them in the composite body. The tail section is also tucked inside the body frame when going into road driving mode.
Science fiction edging close to fruition
According to the makers, AirCar has been fully tested for a full range of flight and performance capabilities in varying conditions. The mention-worthy aspect was the incredible static and dynamic stability in the aircraft mode. Take-off and landing sequences were achieved without any manual intervention.
If all goes well, we could see the flying car hit production in the next 12 months. The price of this future-forward car has not yet been revealed, but Klein explicitly mentions the fact that the flying car market will touch $1.5 trillion by 2040. It’ll be interesting to see the AirCar in action next year, and we are now closest to seeing science fiction turn into practical reality!
