Hybrid Car-Aircraft Completes A 35 Minute Flight Test - Slovakia - 01 Jul 2021
Handout photo - A new milestone has been hit for AirCar - a prototype car that can transform into an aircraft and has completed a successful 35-minute flight, and at the click of a button it transforms back into a car! The aircraft completed its test flight in Slovakia, from airports Nitra to Bratislava on 28 June, which makes the aircrafts 142nd successful landing. It's capable of flying about 600 miles at a height of 8,200ft (2,500m) and has completed over 40 hours of test flights. The car/aircraft was operated by its inventor, Professor Stefan Klein and its co-founder, Anton Zajac. Professor Stefan Klein described the experience as "very pleasant". The car has a BMW engine and even runs off petrol-pump fuel, but it takes much more than that for it to take flight into the air. When on the ground, the vehicle looks like a modern sports car, where the wings of the aircraft are folded smoothly down the side - it takes 2 minutes and 15 seconds to turn into an aircraft from sports car mode. AirCar has a fixed propeller at the back, as well as a ballistic parachute for any emergencies. Unlike drone-taxis, AirCar is unable to take off or land vertically, and requires a runway - similar to a plane you take when you're off your holidays. However, unlike the planes you're used to, AirCar is only capable of carrying 2 people with a combined weight of 31 stone.
