Flying Cars are FINALLY Here (Sort Of...)
Forget Los Angeles traffic! You won't need those stinking roads when you fly to work. I'll admit, it's a little premature to call these people-movers "flying cars" just yet, but Chinese company AutoFlight is on the right track. It just flew its "Prosperity" electric whirlybird (okay, it's really an eVTOL) between two mega-cities in a world-first, autonomous demo flight.
Let's be honest, it looks a little like a giant bug and definitely seems louder than your average mosquito at 65 dBA. That's not bad for a flying machine that can cruise at 124 mph (200 km/h). Still, a 31-mile (50 km) trip in 20 minutes beats three hours in a Chinese traffic jam any day.
Get ready for the weirdest thing of all – there's no pilot! The whole thing flies itself! Five brave souls (four passengers and a pilot in case AI glitches out) can cram themselves in once the service is operational, but for now there were no passengers. This inter-city jaunt was completely computer-controlled, zipping through the air above 86 million people – no pressure.
But here's where things get really interesting. AutoFlight isn't just building fancy toys for the mega-rich. China's betting big on this tech with a whole network of air taxi routes springing up. We're talking hundreds of routes, thousands of little landing pads called "vertiports", and a serious boost in jobs. Imagine pilots, engineers, and even those folks directing traffic in the sky! Not to mention their ambitious plans for 300,000 cargo flights buzzing around every year!
And let's not forget, those lucky passengers won't be stuffed in like sardines either. The guy who designs Ferraris and Maseratis had a hand in the "Prosperity's" interior. They're promising a spacious, comfy ride, and even in-flight entertainment to keep you distracted from the fact you're zipping across the city rooftops with no pilot at the helm. Not bad for your aerial Uber, huh?
This overgrown dragonfly gets its buzz from ten rotors for lift and three more for pushing it forward. AutoFlight says their Prosperity can cover a respectable 155 miles (250 km) on a single charge and weighs in at a svelte 4400 lbs (2000 kg). Plus, it's supposedly quiet enough to blend in with city traffic, though your neighbors might still disagree.
AutoFlight plans to get Chinese certification for hauling people within two years, and there's even talk of flying folks around at the 2024 Paris Olympics. But if you're dreaming of picking up your takeout in this thing, well... those delivery drones suddenly don't look so silly. They're working on a heavy-lift cargo version called "CarryAll", but who knows when we'll see that one buzzing around?
I'll admit, my inner skeptic has a field day with this stuff, but it's a brave new world in the skies. While AutoFlight is strutting around with the "world's longest flight" record, their competition EHang is ready to start hauling passengers around in China - right now. The whole thing feels a bit Wild West – regulations are scrambling to catch up, but hey, maybe one day we'll all skip traffic and take to the air.
