The twentieth century has seen numerous innovations and breakthroughs. This includes the breaking of the sound barrier, the progression of nuclear technology, and space travel. Science and science fiction alike have inspired numerous people to wonder not whether flying cars will become a reality but when. Flying cars are no longer just a dream.

Terrafugia and the TF-X™

Terrafugia’s TF-X™ is set to revolutionize personal transportation for us all.

With this stylish, futuristic-looking vehicle, you’ll have the convenience of true door-to-door transportation, since you’ll be able to drive it on any road or highway and it won’t be necessary to use an airport for takeoff and landing. When you arrive in style at your destination, imagining yourself parking in a single car garage or any parking space, just as you would a traditional car.

The TF-X™ can travel for 500 miles or 800 km, and it will cruise at 200 mph or 320 km/h, running on unleaded automotive gasoline. The electric motor pods that enable flight put out 1 MW of power.

If you want to purchase one of these vehicles – and who doesn’t have that thought cross their mind in some way after seeing it? The price is expected to be consistent with that of high-end luxury cars. More details will become available as development continues, but that shouldn’t dissuade you from getting in the queue now!

Flight by car is a matter of time

If you think that this is a hoax or a one-off, think again.

A Slovakian company has recently released its newest model of an extended, road-prepared automobile with stackable wings. They say that it can navigate city traffic but can also take off from any of the world’s airports.

Juraj Vaculik, CEO and Co-Founder of AeroMobil, has stated that his firm plans to shift flying cars to the marketplace sooner rather than later.

Airbus is also getting in on the act, with its flying car project dubbed Vahana. Expectations are to be a single-manned aircraft under autopilot that can take off and land vertically.

Trial and error

Living in a world in which flying cars is soon to be a reality did not happen overnight. Various options have been put into consideration to make flying cars a reality. Here are some of the rejected ideas.

Turbines and Jets, as used in helicopters – The noise of these components was off-putting to manufacturers, and their fuel consumption makes them too costly to be a viable solution for the general public.

Airship technology – Airships need to be huge. Their size would make flying cars impractical. You certainly could not store your car in a typical garage.

Rockets – Rockets are fantastic when it comes to providing massive amounts of power, quickly, and for short periods, but they are not suitable for cruising at low speeds.

Wingless/Lifting Frames – The principle with this kind of plane is that the body of the aircraft itself produces the lift rather than conventional flying wings. This is effective for subsonic, supersonic, and hypersonic flight, but not so good for taking off and landing safely. For this reason, vehicles like these would not be appropriate for public use.

A Positive Outlook on Potential Setbacks

As you might imagine, Terrafugia and other flying car manufacturers have had to address many challenges. And they continue to overcome various impracticalities. North American and European regulate their airspace are tightly. So it is very difficult for any company to get permission for commercial flight. This is particularly so in dense urban areas. With major players like Terrafugia and Airbus in the market, however, these issues are far from insurmountable.

Airbus CEO Rodin Lyasoff insists that pilotless flying cars are an attainable. He says that not only will laws regarding airspace change to meet the needs of a changing world but robot aircraft are cheaper to produce than traditional aircraft. With full automation, aircraft can be lighter and smaller, which significantly reduces manufacturing costs.

The European Union is solidly backing manufactures to make the flying cars technology a reality. We’ve had 100 years of road-building, but establishing air travel for cars is in its early stages.

Infrastructure Changes

Flying cars are suitable for smaller journeys of about 400 miles. This is due to travel time to and from airports, extended by necessary security checks. Using airports will not always be necessary, though.

In the near future, major roads may include landing. However, vertical take-offs and landings would remove the need for the construction of costly roads and runways. The TF-X™ will have the ability to take off and land vertically using a level clearing that is no less than 100 feet or 30 meters in diameter.

It’s also worth noting that another benefit of flying cars apart from giving drivers/pilots independence and the ultimate in convenience, is that they ought to decrease traffic mobbing because they will be distributed in various levels of airspace.

Public Perception

While the idea of autonomous aircraft causes anxiety in many people. This was also the case with automated trains and trams. Remember that we’re also at the cutting-edge of technology that delivers driverless cars. As technology advances, innovative manufacturers like Terrafugia forge ahead. Public perception is catching up to the reality.

The technical aspects of flying cars are advancing quickly. People are the biggest hitch to progress. To fly a car, people must become pilots, which means time and expense that might be a hindrance to the general public.

The good news is training to fly the TF-X™ will be easier than attaining a traditional pilot’s license or a sport pilot certificate, so this is not going to be an issue for everyone. To drive the TF-X™, all you’ll need is a standard US driver’s license.

So, are you ready to take to the skies?

Technology tackles potential barrier of issues with human piloting.  The development of artificial intelligence in the form of autopilot systems look set to resolve the problem of the human element by swapping human piloting with robots.

For more on Terrafugia’s delivery of its own flying car model, see the Terrafugia TF-X™ specs here. Act now and you can be one of the first people in the world to buy and own a flying car.