Living Your Dream with Top Flying Cars

Ever since science fictions and magazines hyped up people with promises of flying cars by the 21st century, commuters around the world haven’t stopped dreaming of owning a car that could takeoff mid-route and get away from all the heavy traffic on the ground. That dream might become a reality soon enough, for many big companies have showcased their versions of flying cars, and promised to make them available to the general public soon. This sudden shift is due to the availability of new technologies that have emerged in the recent years: new discoveries in the field of physics leading to better and more compact motors, and lightweight building materials that can actualize flying cars. As there are no predecessors to follow, designers can go wild with the structures and designs of these cars. How many propellers will they have? What kind of landing mechanics will they use? Will they look like a plain old helicopter or something straight out of a comic? The possibilities are endless.

For those whose the affordability of a flying car is out of the question, there is an emerging industry in a service like those of Uber or Lyft called Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL), where you could hail a flying machine to you from an app like you could a car. Once summoned, a car-like machine with wings (or other flying mechanics) will land on your rooftop or backyard, and take you to your designated destination in the sky, away from all the traffic and congested roads underneath.

Still, the process of regulating and introducing them to an already-established transportation system is hard and could take years to be completed. In addition, the flying cars themselves are still in their testing stages, or worse, just an idea on paper. Nevertheless, some have been showcased in displays and showrooms around the world, which means that flying cars are definitely the foreseeable future of transportation. Here’s a look at some winged cars that could be a part of your free-from-worries future transportation routines.

The Terrafugia Transition

The Terrafugia Transition is not the most futuristic or awe-inspiring looking flying car out there, at least not what would come to people’s mind when they think of a flying car. The power source is not very futuristic either - the Terrafugia uses gasoline. However, the brand is in the process of designing a model that solely runs on electricity. It could seat two and transform into flight mode with just a push of a button, and its foldable wings mean that it can fit into a conventional household garage.

The Terrafugia Transition folds its wings

Once aloft, the Terrafugia’s cruising range is about 644 km, and its top speed is 161 kmph. On the ground, it functions as a normal car, with airbags and an addition airframe parachute. The technology to automatically detect and avoid terrain is a step-up from normal prop planes and ensures a safer flight. Founded and having been under development since 2006, the Terrafugia Transition is priced at $299,000, of which a deposit of $10,000 can be reserved at the Terrafugia’s website. In November 2017, media reports suggested that the first vehicles could be delivered in 2019.

Neva AirQuad One

As the name suggests, the AirQuad One looks like a quad bike, the difference being the turbofans on all four of its corners. Designed and produced by Neva Aerospace, the AriQuad One is a vehicle powered by electricity and is expected to weight about 500kg and could carry payloads up to 100kg. Propulsive electric turbofans are designed to optimize the Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) that is a prerequisite for personal aircraft in industrial and urban space.

An AirQuad One is flying in an urban area

The AirQuad One’s flying time is estimated to be 20 to 30 minutes, so it is not an exact fit for longer trips. However, due to its size and its compatibility with electric cars’ re-charging station, it could serve in place of emergency cars, especially in crowded areas with regular traffic jams. The AirQuad could also be a great vehicle for people who are into extreme sport, as AirQuad allows them to take part in air sports without going through all the willy nilly process of gaining access to an aircraft.

Aeromobil Flying Car

The Aeromobil is a flying car that actually looks like a car. Its body at first glance looks like that of a luxury car with a teardrop shape. However, don’t let its appearance fool you. The Aeromobil can transition into a flying machine in just 3 minutes, with its wing unfurl and rear propellers extend outward. The retractable landing gear and entrance make for an unassuming-looking vehicle on the road, but its interior of digital displays and a steering wheel that can switch from drive mode to flight mode say otherwise.

An Aeromobil spreads its wings

Going along with its luxurious look is its high price. The company put the Aeromobil on display at Paris Air Show with a price of $1.2 million. Only 500 units of the vehicle will be produced, so its rarity, applied technologies and flying ability can somewhat justify the price. Version 4.0 will be launched commercially in 2020, and a four-seater taxi called Aeromobil 5.0 is already being conceptualized.

Airbus Pop.Up

The producer of the largest commercial plane in the world, the A380, has cooperated with Italdesign to come up with Pop.Up, the first fully electric vehicle with zero emission.. Premiered at the 87th Geneva International Motor Show, it is said to be a solution to relieve traffic congestions in big cities around the world. The Pop.Up is said to an easy, no hassle and user-focused transportation system. An Artificial Intelligence system will suggest the best transportation route based on the user’s knowledge of their journey through an easy-to-access app.

One ground-moduled Pop.Ups and one air-moduled Pop.Ups are operating on a runway

The concept of the Pop.Up consists of a passenger capsule, which is either attached to a ground module or an air module, depending on the traveller’s need. The air module is a quadcopter that attaches to the roof of the capsule, which would be automatically released from its ground base. The passenger capsule can also be integrated with other means of transportation. This entire operation can be done through an app and with the assistance of an AI system, and the ride itself is completely auto-piloted.

Lilium Jet

The Lilium Jet is the world’s first vertical take-off and landing jet. It can transport up to 5 passengers, with a speed of 300 kmph and a range of 300 km. Its usage is most associated with travelling, claiming to be able to fly from airports to your destination in just a few minutes, as opposed to taxis that could take hours in heavy traffic. Does it sound too good to be true? Here’s the catch: Lilium Jets are not up for sale, but they will work as air-taxis that you pay for each ride. It is expected that by 2025, Lilium Jet’s app will go into operation and the price for each ride is quite affordable.

A Lilium Jet parks on a rooftop

The appearance of the machine is as basic as you can get: a football-like body with two extended wings on both sides. A line of swivelling fans is placed on the wings at the back of the jet. The goal of the jet is to have “better performance in safety, noise, speed, range, and payload”, but exclude all the complexity of other existing concepts. And its trust in simplicity works, as a test flight of a prototype in Munich, Germany in April was successful.

Whether these flying cars are just ideas on paper or actually being produced, one thing we can be sure of is that the day where people can own a flying machine is not an impossibility. The improvement and innovation of transportation technologies applied to these flying cars would pave the way for many future inventions, creating endless possibilities for a future of fast and eco-friendly vehicles. With flying cars already in the making, cars that could travel in space doesn’t seem that improbable now, does it?

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