It’s long been a cherished vision of the future: a flying car you can keep at home to commute to work or drop in on friends.
And now the dream that would make traffic jams a thing of the past may be about to come true thanks to an Israeli start-up.
The AIR ONE is a two-seater electric flying vehicle that you can park in your garage and charge in your home.
The makers say it’s so simple to operate, “your Safta” could fly it.
Able to take off and land vertically, the AIR ONE can stay in the air on a fully charged battery for up to hour.
Flying at up to 150mph, it has a maximum range of 110 miles.
Advanced computer technology helps to limit the demand on human piloting skills, so owners should be able to learn how to fly one with 30 hours training or less.
Ever-vigilant software systems similar to those used in drones are in place to prevent collision and crashes.
And while it’s not cheap, the expected £110,000 price tag is less than the price of a top-of-the range Tesla and makes it affordable for more than just the super-rich.
Targeted at what is set to be a multi-billion-pound eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) market, it is set to go on sale as a “buy and fly” model as early as 2024, if everything goes according to plan.
The makers are Air, a technology firm in the town of Pardes Hanna just south of Haifa.
They have already successfully tested automated unmanned prototypes bearing weight equivalent to passengers. The next stage will be a test flight with a human pilot, and is scheduled to take place within the next few months.
The startup is already taking £750 deposits from eager would-be owners who want the chance to drive in the sky.
So far the company has received more than 150 orders from eager would-be owners all around the world. The design is the brainchild of Air’s founder and chief technology officer Chen Rosen.
He told the JC: “We use the term ‘flying car’ because we built it as automotive-grad, but it’s a small plane that you can fly around and park in your garage as the wings come down. We want to make personal aviation accessible to a lot more people.
“You do not need an airport to fly this, we want to make this experience the same as people would experience their cars. We want people to use this every day We’re not talking about commercial flights, we’re talking about people using this for school drop off, to go shopping or to the office.
“Think about the zero traffic and the time you’ll save.”
Explaining that the aircraft has always been designed for the private ownership market rather than being intended for commercial use, Mr Rosen says: “The licence required is a lower level of training, it’s not much different than a basic sports pilot license, which is 15 to 30 hours in the US for example and costs about $4,000 [£3,000].
“Even your safta could fly one.”
Recalling how the development of the AIR ONE began, Mr Chen says: “I was always into aircraft and drones, and developed many for smaller companies and about four years ago I began exploring the idea of putting a person on board.”
He adds that the technology has been designed to eliminate risk: “You cannot flip yourself upside down, it’s always controllable and there are lots of safety features. Eventually it will have sensors that will prevent you from crashing into a building.
“You cannot fly faster than what is required for safety. The software built in is an AI-enabled monitoring system which does frequent inspections of the vehicle.”
AIR has been working with the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) for two years and expects to obtain certification by the end of 2023 for the AIR ONE as a light aircraft.
