The Green Car Website reckons that a flying car approved for use in the USA could soon be approved for use in Europe.
It’s called the Terrafugia, and can do 35mpg on the road at up to 65mph. It’s a two-seater and can fly at 115mph, whereupon it uses 5 gallons of fuel per hour!
In the UK, it would cost £150,000 – and already you can pre-order by paying a $10,000 deposit.
The article explains that Terrafugia is Latin for “escape from land” – reflecting a desire for cars which could escape from the congested roads and soar above the traffic.
What it doesn’t say is that it is also a reflection on how out of touch with reality some people really are!
Apparently (well, obviously), you will need a drivers license AND a pilot’s licence. But anyone who is stupid enough to think it will solve any problems in the UK, with overhead cables and trees, and other air traffic, shouldn’t be let outside alone – nevermind about have driver’s and pilot’s licences!
Precisely how (and where) you would attain take-off velocity anywhere other than at an airport is currently not being considered.
Its wingspan of just under 30 feet also raises questions. You’d need one of the wider stretches of the M25 to even think about launching it – and we all know what the M25 is like in terms of getting up to 3rd gear, let alone take-off velocity.
One of my pupils raised a valid point. He said it’s bad enough with crashes in two dimensions, without adding a third. Of course, that would also raise issues for innocent road users already adversely affected by lunatics on the road coming at them from the left and the right. You wouldn’t want to add above to all that, would you?