I follow this topic closely, mainly because I'm curious. I also grew up with the Jetsons cartoons, and in those series every single character had some sort of a flying car.
The technology in this field evolves rapidly. There are at least 5-6 startups with vehicles in the latest testing stages, and some of them already got permits for flying their VTOLs (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) machines in some areas.
The video above, though, is the closest I've seen to an actual vehicle. It looks incredibly cute, the engineering seems solid, and it's just beautiful. When I first saw it I had glimpses of the 5th Element movie, in which Bruce Willis tries to escape in his flying car, only to discover he has LeeLoo (big ba-da-bum) in the backseat.
The startup that made this thing, Bellwether, is based in London and what you've seen is their first unmanned flight. The vehicle is half the size of the actual one, and it was flown remotely.
The real size Volar (that's the name of the product) is expected to have a 90 minutes lasting battery, which will allow speeds of over 217km/h, at an altitude of 3000 feet.
I might get one just to see if there's any LeeLoo's out there to catch with it, to be honest.
I prefer the VTOLs that don't require a bunch of propellers, because that just seems like an accident waiting to happen. The Bellweather looks like they wanted a Lamborghini style and squeezed a VTOL into it. I hope the full-sized model doesn't have as rough of a take off.
Jetoptera's VTOL looks great, but it seems as if the company is placing their bets on getting military contracts to either scam the government with a never materializing product.
Thanks for the link, very interesting.
This one just popped up on my YouTube suggestions.
Orb Aerospace. They too seem to be focusing on working with the military to cover their costs.
They are using a big propeller in the center for vertical lift and a couple of what looks like concealed props in the front for horizontal.
Hopefully not because they're falling out a building as that would require falling out a building and those propellors look hazardous x_x
Dear @dragosroua, Nice meet to you! I read your good article! If flying cars cause traffic accidents, it will be hell where plane crashes happen in the middle of the city.
Fascinating video clip! I also grew up with the Jetsons and it's sort of spooky to see that in the near future what I saw in an old cartoon might be reality in this 3D world. Cheers, all the best, take care, and stay safe and warm during this winter! Namaste! 🙏