Flying cars, eVTOL and jet pack news and discussion thread

[firestar464]

https://global.toyota/en/newsroom/corpo ... 25854.html

OG source

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Jetson founder pushes the limits of 'Freestyle' eVTOL agility
By Loz Blain
October 13, 2024

Jetson Founder Tomasz Patan is clearly getting very comfortable with the Jetson One eVTOL's flight control system ... Watch him wrench the controls around to show off how sharply – and safely – this thing can handle tight turns in flight.

Multicopter drones were revolutionary little gadgets when they started to appear on the scene for a number of reasons, but one was their highly automated fly-by-wire control systems. No human could manually control motor speeds on upwards of four rotors simultaneously, but a sensor-equipped flight control system certainly could – hence, drones like the DJI Phantom were able to automatically lift off and land, maintain altitude if required, and self-balance against wind gusts to hover in place, while also responding quickly to a pilot's commands.

This is part of the promise with eVTOL aircraft – some of which, like the Jetson One, are really best described as great big multicopter drones a person can sit in.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/jetson-agility-evtol/

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FAA creates America's first new aircraft category since the 1940s
By David Szondy
October 23, 2024

In a major jump into the era of eVTOL air taxis and multicopter cargo drones, the US FAA has issued new regulations that introduce the first new aircraft category, called "power-lift" aircraft, since modern helicopters were introduced in the 1940s.

According to the FAA and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a power-lift aircraft is "a heavier-than-air aircraft capable of vertical take-off, vertical landing, and low-speed flight, which depends principally on engine-driven lift devices or engine thrust for the lift during these flight regimes and on non-rotating aerofoils for lift during horizontal flight."

Essentially, this means aircraft that combine the characteristics of both fixed-wing planes and helicopters. In other words, they can take off, hover, and land like helicopters, yet act like fixed-winged craft in horizontal flight. As of now, these include convertiplanes, tilt-rotors, tilt-wings, rotor-wings, tail-sitters, and VSTOL aircraft like the Harrier and the F-35B Lighting II that use vector thrust, lift jets, or lift fans for vertical flight.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/faa-first ... nce-1940s/

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Switchblade flying car gets production redesign after first flight
By Ben Coxworth
November 04, 2024

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/switchbla ... on-design/
It was just a year ago that the Switchblade flying car made its first actual flight, moving one step closer to real-world usage. Based on what was learned in the course of that flight, its makers have now unveiled the design for the production version of the vehicle.

Should you be unfamiliar with the Switchblade, it's a fixed-wing flying car being developed for the civilian market by Oregon aviation company Samson Sky.

In ground mode, the three-wheeled two-seater moves along the road much like any other car, with its wings folded in beneath its body, and its tail folded into the rear. The prototype is already capable of reaching the targeted top ground speed of 125 mph (201 km/h).

Upon reaching an airport or airstrip, the Switchblade switches into flight mode. As you might have guessed, this involves folding out its wings and extending its tail. The whole process takes just three minutes.

Honestly, if I had to redesign this I'd make it able to pull its wings in to within 3 feet of the outer body and or put them up against the base of the body, and make the back rise up and sit ontop of the body. This would make a pretty good attempt at a flying car. As close to one as we're probably going to get.

If this will to work in the future we're going to need off and on ramps for take off and landing built on our highways and freeways.

[weatheriscool]

Hydrogen-powered, box-winged eVTOL makes first untethered flight
By David Szondy
November 17, 2024
https://newatlas.com/aircraft/hydrogen- ... ed-flight/

We've been following the development of Australia's AMSL Aero's longe-range, hydrogen-powered Vertiia eVTOL for some time and now the box-winged tilt-rotor aircraft has completed its first free flight after over a year of 50 tethered tests.

In recent years, multi-prop rotor craft have become increasingly common as all manner of companies have battled to gain a foothold in the emerging air taxi market. Despite this, the Vertiia still manages to stand out in the innovation stakes.

It's eight electric rotors are powered by a hydrogen fuel cell buffered through a battery system, which the company claims gives it a range of 620 miles (1,000 km) at a speed of 161 knots (186 mph, 300 km/h) and the ability to carry a pilot and four passengers at 30% of the cost of a conventional helicopter.

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[weatheriscool]

First look at jet-powered VTOL X-plane for DARPA program
By David Szondy
December 07, 2024
We got a glimpse at what a new cross between a helicopter and a jet aircraft might look like after Bell released a new image. It's of a model used in wind tunnel tests of its entry in DARPA's Speed and Runway Independent Technology (SPRINT) program.

Rotorcraft like helicopters have the advantage of vertical takeoffs and landings in rough country but haven't much in the way of speed. Jet planes have lots of speed but need runways and even the STOVL variety need a properly flat surface to land on. It was long accepted that these were two very different classes of aircraft without much in the way of overlap.

https://newatlas.com/military/bell-jet- ... a-program/

[weatheriscool]

[firestar464]

literally sourced from RT

[weatheriscool]

literally sourced from RT

Doesn't lessen how cool of an invention this is. Here is another link https://www.viory.video/en/videos/a3014 ... -s-gwalior

[weatheriscool]

Jetson founder tests the air for future eVTOL racing
By Paul Ridden
December 20, 2024

While Australia's Airspeeder is yet to race its sporty eVTOLs with pilots at the controls, Jetson's founder and CTO Tomasz Patan has taken its One flyer to the air for what's been billed as the birth of the world's first eVTOL air racing.

Airspeeder is aiming to set up world championship races using its own striking crewed eVTOL (electric Vertical Take-off and Landing) aircraft, and has been building up momentum since abandoning a Kickstarter to raise funds and interest in 2017.

But though its prototypes have been flying for a while now, and championships have been held, the pilots have controlled their racers remotely from the safety of terra firma. Now, following an earlier demonstration of agility, Jetson has beaten the air racing pioneers to the punch. Kind of.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/jetson-on ... g-preview/

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Watch the Jetson Personal Air Vehicle take flight, then order your own
By Michael Franco
March 28, 2025

Described as a "formula one racing car for the sky," the Jetson One is an electric-powered VTOL sky toy that can hover, bank, and reach speeds of up to 63 mph. The company's latest video will leave you wanting it more than ever.

Last October, we highlighted the aerial moves of a personal electric single-passenger drone that certainly got our attention. The Jetson One is an electric vertical take-off-and-landing (eVTOL) vehicle that sits in a sweet spot between commercial air taxis and outrageous flying cars.

Now the company is back, marking the release of its first production-line vehicle with the following 10-minute-long video that shows just how fun the One is to steer through the sky.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/jetson-pe ... on-flight/

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Pilotless air taxi gains approval for commercial flight operations
By Paul Ridden
April 01, 2025

Tickets for autonomous flights over two tourist spots in China should go on sale shortly. China's civil aviation authority has given the green light for urban air mobility outfit EHang to begin low-altitude commercial operations with its EH216-S eVTOL.

We've been following EHang's flight path for a number of years – from early camera drones through to the first CES appearance of its air taxi, subsequent trials for tourist hops in China and beyond, and most recently testing a prototype solid-state battery.

The company customized its EH216-S flyer for that test, but it's the production model that's been granted Air Operator Certificates for human-carrying operations by the Civil Aviation Administration of China. Such certification "confirms that the human-carrying aircraft EH216-S meets the technical, management, and safety standards related to operations set by the CAAC."

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/ehang-eh2 ... -approval/

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Barrel-rotor flying car prototype begins flight testing
By Loz Blain
April 03, 2025
https://newatlas.com/aircraft/barrel-ro ... cyclotech/
One of the most fascinating aircraft in the eVTOL space has moved into flight testing with a new large-scale prototype. Cyclotech's Blackbird airframe becomes the world's first aircraft to fly with six barrel-shaped "Cyclorotors" for propulsion.

The Austrian-based Cyclotech team has been working on commercializing its wacky-looking barrel rotors for a long time now – we first encountered these guys back in 2011 under the name D-Dalus. But the central technology here is both fascinating and a potentially big advantage in these early days of electric vertical takeoff aircraft.

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Inside Archer's bold plans for air taxi rides across NYC, SF, and LA
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
April 17, 2025
https://newatlas.com/aircraft/archer-pl ... nyc-sf-la/

Santa Clara-based eVTOL maker Archer has its sights set on making air taxis a thing, like, really soon. It's just revealed plans for a network of vertiports from which its electric aircraft can take off and land in New York (NYC) – so you can beat street traffic and get around town in minutes.

The network will include several existing helipads held by infrastructure partners like fixed-base operator (FBO) Atlantic Aviation. The initial goal for Archer is to get air travelers from Manhattan to nearby airports like JFK in 5-15 minutes, instead of the 1-2 hours it could take driving through city traffic.

It's building this network in partnership with United Airlines, which previously ordered 300 of Archer's electric Midnight aircraft that can each carry four passengers and a pilot. The company has also partnered with auto giant Stellantis to build a manufacturing facility in Georgia, with the capacity to eventually produce more than 2,000 of these aircraft per year.

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Joby S4 makes historic piloted tilt-rotor eVTOL transition flight
By David Szondy
April 29, 2025
https://newatlas.com/aircraft/joby-s4-m ... on-flight/

Joby Aviation achieved a major milestone on April 22, 2025 when it became the first company to fly an all-electric tilt-rotor eVTOL with a pilot aboard as it transitioned from horizontal to vertical flight and back again.

The race to place the first passenger-carrying eVTOL into regular taxi service has been a mixed bag in recent years. On the one hand, the technology has been maturing, but on the other companies once thought to be front runners are falling by the wayside as backers become impatient after pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into projects with no visible return on their investment.

One ray of optimism is Joby's S4 prototype, which now looks to be on the road to FAA certification. The all-electric, six-rotor eVTOL aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter and flies forward like a fixed-wing aircraft has been under development by the California-based aerospace company since it was founded in 2009. With a top speed of 174 knots (200 mph, 322 km/h), a range of up to 130 nautical miles (150 miles, 241 km), and an operational ceiling of 15,000 ft (5,000 m), the prototype has been making uncrewed test flights since 2017, clocking up 40,000 miles (64,000 km) in the air.

[weatheriscool]

1,600-hp three-seat eVTOL promises jet-setters 500 miles at 220 mph
By Abhimanyu Ghoshal
May 04, 2025

London-based startup AltoVolo is aiming high with its entry in the developing eVTOL space. It plans to offer a powerful personal hybrid-electric aircraft that will seat three people, deliver 510 miles (821 km) of range, and hit cruise speeds up of to 220 mph (354 km/h) – all while making 80% less noise than a helicopter.


Those are some fighting words, especially when you consider that these figures are higher than what most other eVTOL makers have claimed so far – and the fact that all AltoVolo has to show at the moment is 3D renders of its Sigma aircraft, albeit rather pretty ones.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/altovolo- ... 500-miles/

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Inventor building his own flying car, because why not?
By Joe Salas
May 07, 2025

The word "flying car" immediately puts visions of "The World of Tomorrow" World's Fair in my head. Retro-looking flashy contraptions like the Ford Volante concept car. If you were to ask Dezső Molnár what his vision of a flying car looked like, he'd simply show you the one he's building now.

It's been nearly a decade since New Atlas checked in with Dezső's then-concept Streetwing flying car. Much has changed in the overall appearance, but the fundamentals have stayed the same: build a vehicle that can drive on public roads and fly in the most fun and economic way possible for people who actually want to go places.

A quick background on the Los Angeles, California-based inventor will tell you he's probably unlike anyone you've ever met before. Having personally met him several times in various places around the US, I'd liken him to the Hunter S. Thompson of rocket science and inventions – sans the schedule-1 shenanigans, of course.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/dezso-mol ... lying-car/

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Klein's flying supercar rolls out in 2026, with an amphibian to follow
By Loz Blain
May 12, 2025

More than 30 years in the making, this long-range, high-speed, flight-tested, two-seat flying car is slated to be certified later this year, with customer deliveries beginning in early 2026. The team tells us an amphibious version could follow.

Slovakia's Klein Vision has now made more than 500 test flights of its rather handsome 4th-gen AirCar prototype, and at the 2025 Living Legends of Aviation Gala Dinner in LA last week, the company showed off renders of the 5th-gen prototype that will form the basis for certification and finally go through to production.

This design, co-founder Anton Zajac tells us over a video call, is slated to fly in September. The company expects a full Part 23/CS-23 certification with EASA and/or the US FAA by late September, clearing the path for mass production and customer deliveries to begin early next year.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/klein-vis ... roduction/

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Split-wing aircraft makes world-first fan-in-wing transition flight
By Joe Salas
May 17, 2025

Horizon Aircraft just made aviation history, becoming the first eVTOL to achieve a stable wing-borne flight transition using a fan-in-wing design with its "large-scale" Cavorite X7 demonstrator. The best part is that this particular aircraft is meant to be just that, a conventional aircraft – that just happens to be able to take off and land vertically like a helicopter.

It works by having 14 fans embedded within the wings. Five per main wing with a pair in each forward canard. Horizon designed a clever patented mechanism that allows the wing surfaces to slide open for vertical lift from the battery-powered fans, and slide closed as the X7 transitions to forward winged-flight, like a normal plane, with a gas-powered turbine engine powering the rear push-prop.

https://newatlas.com/aircraft/horizon-c ... s-history/



Underwater jetpack powers free-diving adventures for longer
By Ben Coxworth
May 19, 2025

https://newatlas.com/marine/cudajet-und ... pack-2025/
While we've seen a number of wearable underwater propulsion systems, they've typically been strapped to the user's arms or legs. The newly refreshed CudaJet is different, in that it's a true backpack-style underwater jetpack.

Editor's note: Readers often ask us for follow-ups on memorable stories. What has happened to this story over the years? This article was originally published in 2023 but has been re-edited and updated with new information current as of May, 2025. Enjoy!

We first heard about the device almost seven years ago, when it was a prototype called the Cuda.

It was developed by British underwater enthusiast Archie O'Brien while he was in his final year at Loughborough Design School. Among other things, he wanted to create a system that was lighter and faster than existing products. The CudaJet launched in 2023 as the commercial version of what he envisioned.