A future filled with flying cars could be closer than we think. AirCar, a car-aircraft hybrid, has taken to the skies for a 35-minute flight between airports in Slovakia.
Created by Stefan Klein, the founder and chief executive of Klein Vision, the AirCar is equipped with a BMW engine and runs on regular petrol fuel. It takes only two minutes and 15 seconds to convert from car to aircraft, BBC reports.
In front of a group of invited reporters and town residents, Klein showed off the creation which reached a cruising speed of 170 kilometres per hour while in the air. The hybrid can carry two people with a combined weight limit of 200 kilograms. It can also fly a distance of about 1,000km at a height of around 2,500 metres. However, unlike drone-taxi prototypes, the AirCar cannot take off and land vertically and requires a runway.
Klein described the journey as "pleasant" and "normal", and said the aircraft took two years to build and costs about $2.3 million.
According to the Klein Vision website, the AirCar has been in development since 2017. A description of the prototype reads: “In the car mode, the object generates downforce using spoiler and elevator pitch whereas in the aircraft mode the entire surface generates lift. Lift body concept includes future development for the spacious interior and for the variety of models: three and four-seaters, twin-engine, and amphibious version.”
Anton Rajac, an adviser and investor in Klein Vision, told the BBC that the company hopes to attract a small percentage of global airline or taxi sales.
"There are about 40,000 orders of aircraft in the United States alone," Rajac said. "If we convert 5 per cent of those, to change the aircraft for the flying car – we have a huge market.”
