Personal Flight
Human powered helicopter grounded
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In 1980, the American Helicopter Society issued a reward of US$20,000 for the first group to build a human powered helicopter. The conditions of flight were to hover in a 10 metre square zone for a minute and reach a height of three metres. Since then around 20 unsuccessful attempts have been made on the feat and none have come close, with the most recent attempt on August 10, 2004 from the University of British Columbia having failed also. Read More
The Airscooter: a helicopter for the home?
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January 21, 2005 The AirScooter II is an ultralight helicopter designed for easy control and manoeuvrability that looks set to take personal recreational airborne vehicles to new heights. Designed by AirScooter Corporation, the AirScooter II is a vehicle that has looked to aviation's past to help develop its future. In building and designing the AirScooter II, inventor and AirScooter Corporation cofounder Woody Norris and his team have successfully adapted a technology that has had a long line of difficulties in getting off the ground. We all recognise the modern helicopter, with its main rotor and tail rotor, but in terms of rotorcraft, the coaxial type had seemed likely to be limited to high-tech military and large transport helicopters. but things are progressing well and the future looks incredibly bright for the innovative and intelligent design of AirScooter II, an ultra-lightweight coaxial rotorcraft helicopter. Read More
CarterCopter: a high-speed, low-cost helicopter
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Mass personal flight will become a reality sometime this century and one of the companies vying for a share of this lucrative market will be Carter Aviation, creator of the CarterCopter - a VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft projected to cruise at 800 kmh (500mph) at 45,000 feet or 300 kmh at sea level. Suitable for designs as small as a two-seater, all the way through to Jumbo size, the CarterCopter's future is very promising. Read More
VTOL AirBike Concept
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Saturday July 26, 2003 Swapping internal combustion for turbine power, Allied Aerotechnics is developing a VTOL (Vertical Take-off and Landing) motorcycle concept designed to access areas that are totally out of reach for any other type of vehicle. Read More
M-400 SkyCar pre-sales underway
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UPDATED November 15, 2004 After recent successful tethered hovering flights of the M400 Skycar, including at the at the WIRED NextFest in San Francisco in May, 2004, Moller International is accepting deposits to secure delivery positions this groundbreaking vehicle. A 10% deposit of US$100,000 will put you in the top 100 on the delivery list for the M-400 Skycar, which is expected to be FAA-certified for use by the end of 2005. Over 100 reservations have already been placed and demand is expected to grow as the working model nears production. Read More
Skydiving becomes Skyflying
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While down is usually the direction that most matters when jumping from a plane at altitude, the Skyray attachable rigid-wing system promises to add airplane-like agility to skydiving. Read More
Powered parachuting on a recumbent bike
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It not exactly what Spielberg's ET had in mind, but it's as close as you can get to a flying bicycle without extra-terrestrial intervention. The Para-Cycle is a semi-reclined, 3-wheel recumbent bicycle combined with a powered parachute... Read More
Human Powered Flight
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It's a dream shared by anyone who has ridden a bicycle up a steep hill - human powered flight. NASA achieved this feat as part of the Daedalus project over a decade ago with the Light Eagle and Daedalus aircraft flying record breaking distances of 59km and 199km respectively. Designed and constructed by a group of students, professors, and alumni of the MIT, the goal was aircraft fly 115km (the distance that Daedalus is said to have flown when he escaped from King Minos on wings made from wax and feathers) and provide research data for the design and manufacture other high-altitude, long endurance aircraft. Read More
Aero Chute - the cheapest form of flight available
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Human flight has never been more attainable than with the Australian-designed Aerochute - the powered parachute needs less than 15 metres to become airborne, can top 70kmh and the average person can be flying solo after just a few hours of tuition. Most importantly, it is very safe to fly, being close to stall and spin proof, and should the engine stop, it simply lands like a parachute. The Aerochute DUO doesn't have a traditional fixed wing, so flying can only take place when the weather conditions are suitable. If the wind gets above 15 knots, the Aerochute can't fly, which is entirely understandable once you've seen a powered-parachute take-off.
Mercedes (concept) Flying Car
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In the recently released sequel to "Men in Black" (MIB II), agent Kay and agent Jay cruise the alien beat in a black 2003 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan that not only provides a stylish ride but transforms into a space car to help hunt down the villains... Read More
The Next Step: Cars that Fly
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It would look right at home on the set of Bladerunner or the latest Star Wars film, but the Moller M400 Skycar - a versatile, economical, safe, environmentally-responsible Flying Car - is definitely for real.June 3, 2004 It would look right at home on the set of Bladerunner or the latest Star Wars film, but the Moller M400 Skycar - a versatile, economical, safe, environmentally-responsible Flying Car - is definitely for real. Opening up the next frontier in automotive personal transport, the SkyCar is a VTOL (Vertical Takeoff and Landing) vehicle with a cruising speed of 600kmh, a range of more than 1400km, runs on almost any fuel from diesel to natural gas and achieves better fuel efficiency than many sports cars (15mpg or 19 litres per 100km). Read More
