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Where The Hell Are The Flying Cars? It's The 21st Century!

They are so specialised as to be not useful....why are we fussing on these things?

No one lusts after hovercraft, do they?
 
Kondoru said:
They are so specialised as to be not useful....why are we fussing on these things?

No one lusts after hovercraft, do they?
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Id live a hovercraft, no more going around roundabouts for me, just need them to improve their cornering capabilities
 
Coincidentally, on the 'Invisibility Machine' thread, I have just posted an article by the following person and noted he had also written this, published online with supporting research material:

FLYING CARS AND JETPACKS

https://www.flyingcarsandfoodpills.com/flying-cars

There are further articles which may be of interest in other threads. The author refers to his passion as 'retrofuturism':

Flying Cars and Food Pills

https://www.flyingcarsandfoodpills.com/

Edit: I have cross-referenced this to, 'The Good Stuff Online Thread'.
 
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I may have posted this before, but this is a really good book:
Most of it is blamed on too much regulation and risk avoidance in modern times. This was not so in the fifties.
https://www.amazon.nl/Where-My-Flying-Car-English-ebook/dp/B07F6SD34R/

Here are two related reviews:
https://marginalrevolution.com/marg...a-memoir-of-future-past-by-j-storrs-hall.html

One of the main arguments of the book is that we could have had major technological advances in multiple areas if only we had put in another fifty years of hard work on them. Flying cars could have been a thing some time ago!

The author estimates that if quality nanotechnology were up and running, it would take only about a week to rebuild the entire United States. Just imagine how silly the current building permit system would seem then.

The anecdotes on the history of helicopters are interesting and obsessive in a good way.

One of the arguments is simply that we have not much succeeded in boosting our aggregate use of energy. Hall also argues we do not face sufficient challenges, in part because nuclear deterrence has worked so well.

https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2012/06/why-were-we-obsessed-with-flying-cars.html

"Why were we obsessed with flying cars?"
The obvious reasons. There is a ton of free sky. The government has to create traffic up there. If we have driverless cars, why on earth would we do it on the ground where it is likely much harder than doing it in the air, where the bottleneck is pilot skill. It's just practicality to me. I like how he makes a counterpoint to the meme that we need NASA to inspire. The flip side of inspiration can be misleading.
 
Prototype completes another test flight. It has a powered conversion between car and plane, so you don't have to get out and put the wings away.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/30/business/flying-car-flight-slovakia-scli-intl/

-------------------------
A prototype flying car has completed a test flight between two cities in Slovakia, spending 35 minutes airborne.

Klein Vision's AirCar flew between Nitra and the capital Bratislava on Monday, according to a press release published Wednesday.

The AirCar Prototype 1 is powered by a 160 horsepower BMW engine, and comes equipped with a fixed propeller. It transforms from aircraft to road vehicle in less than three minutes.

It has now completed more than 40 hours of test flights, according to Klein Vision, including flying at 8,200 feet and reaching a maximum cruising speed of 190 kilometers per hour (118 miles per hour).
 
Isn't that the report we already covered upthread a littleways???
 
Can just imagine watching the air traffic cops dogfighting with the drug
runners in nicked flying cars, and waiting for the inevitable "bang tinkle tinkle"
of falling bits n body's, could become a national pastime but we may need a
issue of tin helmet's.

:omr:
 
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Yeah I think I'll wait until they've ironed out the bugs.

"What we got back.....didn't live long....fortunately..."
 
PeteByrdie said:
Nope! Not if it turns you into energy soup and reassembles you somewhere else.
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"I won't have my molecules taken apart and reassembled"? In the late 19th century scientists were sure that traveling faster than some small speed would cause miscarriages and illnesses and seeing things go by that fast would stop the cows' milk..
 
Kondoru said:
No one lusts after hovercraft, do they?
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Well - armour-plate one, stick a gun on and fill it with tanks and I'd get quite frothy.

hovercraft02.jpg

hovercraft03.jpg

(Zubr class: National Maritime Defence Show in St. Petersburg last week).
 
Lb8535 said:
"I won't have my molecules taken apart and reassembled"? In the late 19th century scientists were sure that traveling faster than some small speed would cause miscarriages and illnesses and seeing things go by that fast would stop the cows' milk..
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Concerns about insanity when travelling over 30mph are a little different from concerns about being destroyed in a suicide booth and copied somewhere else.

Cue 'ship of Theseus' discussion.
 
PeteByrdie said:
Concerns about insanity when travelling over 30mph are a little different from concerns about being destroyed in a suicide booth and copied somewhere else.

Cue 'ship of Theseus' discussion.
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Probably not to those who know the science of the transfer booths.
 
See, accidents like being turned into all ears is why you should avoid transfer booths.
 
196232835_1837644746409267_4323573799864965657_n.jpg

I found this on Facebook page "Historic Photographs".

Jess Dixon Flying car, air cooled engine with 40hp, top speed 160 Km/hr, could fly up, down aft and forward, 1940s
 
Mikefule said:
Jess Dixon Flying car, air cooled engine with 40hp, top speed 160 Km/hr, could fly up, down aft and forward, 1940s
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This webpage provides much more info (and additional links) about Jess Dixon and his "Flying Ginny."

Jess Dixon and his "Flying Ginny": an untold helicopter pioneer​

Although Stanley Hiller is remembered for introducing the small practical coaxial helicopter, there was one untold American pioneer who beat him by three years, yet is all but forgotten. ...
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https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/th...ing-ginny-an-untold-helicopter-pioneer.16514/
 
I've always favoured pods in tubes! Far better all-round, doesn't incur traffic jams as all the pods could travel at the same distance/speed, can view whilst you travel to your set destination, and could be a very smooth way to travel without having to worry about accidents etc.
 
Goodwood festival as been on the last 3 nights, the last one last night
had bits on driver less and flying cars as well as other futuristic stuff.
 
Lb8535 said:
"I won't have my molecules taken apart and reassembled"? In the late 19th century scientists were sure that traveling faster than some small speed would cause miscarriages and illnesses and seeing things go by that fast would stop the cows' milk..
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Some people will say anything...
 
As if the technical issues weren't dissuasive enough ... The cost structure for owning and operating a flying car will be astronomical - more than you'd spend on one or more contemporary supercars / hypercars. This UK automotive group has compiled some data and generated an initial estimate of the cost.
High Flyers: We’ve Calculated the Cost of Owning a Flying Car

With a real-life flying car recently completing its first ever inter-city test flight, and various car manufacturers discussing the not-so-distant reality of taking to the skies, it seems that flying cars could at some point no longer be a science fiction fantasy, but instead a part of day-to-day life. With that, and our focus on making sure our customers get the right car for the right price, we wanted to find out just how much one might cost. Spoiler alert: it’s a lot!

According to our detailed research, we estimate that early flying cars will cost approximately £535,831, when taking into account the car itself, as well as essential factors such as insurance, parking and fuel. ...
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FULL STORY: https://www.pentagon-group.co.uk/news/how-much-will-flying-cars-cost
 
EnolaGaia said:
As if the technical issues weren't dissuasive enough ... The cost structure for owning and operating a flying car will be astronomical - more than you'd spend on one or more contemporary supercars / hypercars. This UK automotive group has compiled some data and generated an initial estimate of the cost.

FULL STORY: https://www.pentagon-group.co.uk/news/how-much-will-flying-cars-cost
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You will also have to shell out for a pilots licence i would imagine too, they are not cheap.

"How much does a PPL cost in the UK? A PPL Licence costs £13,000 (inc VAT). This cost includes 45hrs of flying time in a single engine aircraft and 5hrs of Night Rating."

https://www.l3commercialaviation.co...ing/easa-pilot-training-courses/ppl-training/
 
So what is new?

I think we established long ago that they would be a both niche and wealthy market.
 
The Opener BlackFly looks like a useful bit of kit.
Still in the early stages but they will sell you one now.
And I still expect it would not be licensable in the UK due to requirements for pilots licence etc.
(And also, as I have mentioned elsewhere, not strictly speaking a flying car.)
I reckon a MkII version, souped up, and a bit bigger, would be absolutely cracking.
 
Trevp666 said:
The Opener BlackFly looks like a useful bit of kit.
Still in the early stages but they will sell you one now.
And I still expect it would not be licensable in the UK due to requirements for pilots licence etc.
(And also, as I have mentioned elsewhere, not strictly speaking a flying car.)
I reckon a MkII version, souped up, and a bit bigger, would be absolutely cracking.
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"Cracking?" Yes, that could be a big possibility!:meh:
 
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