Community | March 19, 2009 | 29 comments

Flying car is a success

source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29775195/

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AwesomeJosh
It was one short flight for a car, one significant step for a Boston-area start up developing what may be the ultimate hybrid.

Terrafugia's Transition is part-car, part-airplane and as of this month, a flight-worthy creation. The vehicle successfully completed its first test flight earlier this month, the company announced on Wednesday.

The flight was short -- just 37 seconds -- and right over the runway, but as Anna Mracek Dietrich, a Terrafugia co-founder and its chief operating officer, pointed out, flying wasn't the key goal.

"The first flight is great, but first landing is what matters," she told Discovery News.

That apparently went well too, according to Phil Mateer, a retired Air Force test pilot who took the wheel for Transition's debut flight on March 5 at Plattsburgh International Airport in Plattsburgh, N.Y.

"The flight was remarkably unremarkable," Mateer said.

Transition's aerial debut followed six months of road tests and years of design. The goal is to create an airplane that can be driven to and from a runway and parked in the family garage at night.

Transition runs on regular unleaded gasoline and can travel up to 500 miles on a single tank of gas. It takes less than 30 seconds for the vehicle's wings to fold up or extend to transform from plane to car or vice-versa.

"The point of the test was to prove that this could both fly and drive," Deitrich said.

Information from the test flight will be used to tweak the Transition's design for a second prototype. The company plans to begin selling the vehicles, which cost $194,000, in 2010, said Richard Gersh, Terrafugia's vice president of business development.

The company has taken deposits for 40 vehicles already, Deitrich said...
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29 comments // Flying car is a success

  • ayashe
    • 0
      ayashe  

    • A flying car is a plane. It would stop congestion during rush hour because there wouldn't be as many people alive. It's even smaller than a small plane, and those are the ones you usually hear about crashing. And that's when they're on their own. Put a bunch people people in the sky? That's just dangerous. Besides if it ever did be released to the public, only wealthy people would be able to afford it.

    • 2 years ago
  • stopnoise
    • 0
      stopnoise  

    • Yeah, the only problem is the battery? What about the NOISE?????? The NOISE people, the NOISE!!!!! I can imagine that buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz in our ears everyday of the week with flying cars that it is more like a small hog aircraft cruising left and right at low altitude. Come on people, wise up!

    • 2 years ago
  • electricsquiral
    • 0
      electricsquiral  
    • stopnoise:

      The buzzing noise you're complaining about is due to the propeller tips breaking the sound barrier. This is common to most propeller driven airplanes, and is most prevalent during takeoff. This effect causes stress in the prop tips and can cause cracking, so to prevent breakage during cruse flight, the engine power output is reduced, and ( if equipped ) the propeller is adjusted to a higher angle of attack to improve efficiency at a lower rpm. This, as well as distance due to altitude, alleviates the noise.

      In addition, this was a first test flight. Of course the machine won't be perfect. They never are.

    • 2 years ago
  • electricsquiral
    • 0
      electricsquiral  

    • According to the video on ras_menelik's second response to dmass5's response, the only problem left for electric powered flight is the battery.

      If you go to the address below I think we have an answer for that; The hypercapacitor, a device that stores large quantities of electricity by electrostatic charge instead of electrochemical reactions found in conventional batteries.

      http://gm-volt.com/2009/02/01/gm-admits-to-a-working-relationship-with-eestor/

      All of that being said, the FAA considers the airframe and the power plant separate parts and so do I.

      This thing is neat, and the cost to convert to electricity would be a pittance compared to the cost of the airframe/auto body.

    • 2 years ago
  • electricsquiral
  • electricsquiral
    • 0
      electricsquiral  

    • According to the video on ras_menelik's second response to dmass5's response, the only problem left for electric powered flight is the battery.

      If you go to the address below I think we have an answer for that; The hypercapacitor, a device that stores large quantities of electricity by electrostatic charge instead of electrochemical reactions found in conventional batteries.

      http://gm-volt.com/2009/02/01/gm-admits-to-a-working-relationship-with-eestor/

      All of that being said, the FAA considers the airframe and the power plant separate parts and so do I.

      This thing is neat, and the cost to convert to electricity would be a pittance compared to the cost of the airframe/auto body.

    • 2 years ago
  • NonaSuomi
    • 0
      NonaSuomi  

    • Congrats, Current poster- you have managed to dig up a years-old PopSci article and realize that the company is, in fact, still around... Get over it- nobody will buy it for serious use and I'll be damned if the FAA wil EVER let this project hit the consumer market. Old news is oooooold.

    • 2 years ago
  • electricsquiral
    • 0
      electricsquiral  
    • NonaSuomi:

      Why not? the FAA have already approved production for the aerocar around 1960. It was a two piece design, and one is still flying, and if you are thinking car gas is the problem; there is an STC available for at least one aircraft for conversion to car gas from avgas.

    • 2 years ago
  • NonaSuomi
    • 0
      NonaSuomi  
    • NonaSuomi:

      FAA regulations aside (such as where you're allowed to fly the thing, when, how high, etc) I seriously doubt that any flying-car design will ever truly "make it big" or become anywhere near as prevalent as today's earthly-bound automobiles. The reason: paranoia. Just in the same vein as the "asian fliers/drivers" racist jokes above, too many people will be put off by the increased risk of flying. Sure, those that actually HAVE flown before can attest to the fact that it's not quite as daunting as it seems (in most situations) but to the Average Joe it's just another license he'd just as soon not need. I think these types of things are interesting to see, to be sure, but ultimately they are only for those who truly want to use them- quite unlike cars are today.

    • 2 years ago
  • jh64487
  • stopnoise
    • 0
      stopnoise  

    • Can you guys see something here? There are no movie of this flight experiment but only a photo. In addition that appears to be a small aircraft on wheels. Not such a big deal. Knowing how intrusive aircraft are these days, one cannot wonder about the noise and the environment disruption they are going to represent buzzing around neighborhoods. So no jump for joy yet!

    • 2 years ago
  • limon
    • 0
      limon  

    • hahaha asians will be crashing all over the place lol jk jk jk
      nah but good start for flying cars, the cool part is that you can park it in your garage .... one day ill buy one and ill put a sick sound system and some 20' lol

    • 2 years ago
  • gabrielzorz
  • Elrick_The_Bass_Gnome
  • neocongo
  • jh64487
  • phodgeman
    • 0
      phodgeman  

    • the flying car could reduce road conjestion, and will get much better milage than a road car.
      Can't imagine the weight of a battery powered plane.

    • 2 years ago
  • ras_menelik
  • el_chivo
    • 0
      el_chivo  

    • If your need a runway to take off and land, is not a flying car, is just a small plane. Is not a flying car until resembles Back to Future!

    • 2 years ago
  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  

    • This is amazing, I wonder if we're on a Wright Brothers style revolution here.

      Maybe we WILL see practical flying cars in 30 or 40 years.

    • 2 years ago
  • smitty44
  • ohh_Donna
  • cerealforeal
  • banditalamode
  • ohh_Donna
  • jh64487
    • 0
      jh64487  
    • ohh_Donna:

      planes don't corner all that well nor do they have reverse.

      ...otherwise...um...that's why its called a flying car.

      maybe you could patent a new one called the driving plane!

    • 2 years ago
  • dmass5
    • 0
      dmass5  

    • a flying electric car would be much more suitable. Although there would be so many things to take in account for if flying vehicles became a common form of transportation with civilians.

    • 2 years ago
  • ras_menelik
  • ras_menelik
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