[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

An airplane requires a lot more skill, training and rule obedience than driving. And a helicopter cruising close to the ground requires even higher skill and alertness. And this looks like a cross between a helicopter & an auto-gyro. Best of luck to them.

We've had flying cars of our own for ages :-)

Fully agree with you. As a person with some flying experience, I am able to handle small planes but have found flying a helicopter to be far more difficult. On the other hand, flying seems difficult but is not as hard as some people believe. During the second world war, ordinary people with no flying experience were turned into pilots by the thousands very quickly. Hence if this thing actually becomes popular, it is not impossible to have many more trained pilots after a decade or two. Of course practical problems remain such as air traffic control, landing and take off sites and so on.

[JS Kwt]

India should get its first flying car in 2021: PAL-V

"AHMEDABAD: India should get its first flying car in 2021, Dutch roadable aircraft-maker PAL-V’s CEO Robert Dingemanse said on Thursday on sidelines of Vibrant Gujarat 2019 that kick-starts in Gandhinagar on Friday. “While our car is set for launch in 2020, our entire production for the year is booked. We hope to see India get its first car in 2021,” he said.

The company hopes to find takers among the Indian coast guard, police, medical teams, government agencies, corporates and individuals, he said. “The Indian government seems upbeat about futuristic technology and hopefully, adoption,” he told ET.

“On the production side, we hope to find Indian vendors specialising in automotive and aerospace engineering to start manufacturing here,” he said. "We seek partnerships to enhance the engineering and software capabilities of our flying car that will be available commercially in 2020,” he said about the futurist car that was showcased in Geneva Motor Show in 2018.

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PAL-V SPECS

Technical specifications
Capacity 2 persons
Mass Empty 664 kg
Maximum baggage load 20 kg
Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) 910 kg
Fuel type Euro 95, Euro 98, E10 *
Fuel capacity 100 l
Dimensions Drive-mode 4m L x 2m W x 1.7m H
Dimensions Flight-mode
(Rotor diameter is 10.75m) 6.1m L x 2m W x 3.2m H
* Unleaded automotive fuel, with max. 10% ethanol (E10), EN 228 specification, min RON 95 (min AKI 91)

Drive mode
Max Speed 160 km/h
Top speed acceleration
(0-100 km/h) <9 seconds
Engine power 100 hp
Fuel economy 7.6 l/100km
Range 1315 km

Flight mode
Economic cruise speed 140 km/h
High cruise speed (90% range) 160 km/h
Maximum speed 180 km/h
Min speed for level flight 50 km/h
Engine power 200 hp
Maximum operating altitude 3500m
Useful load 246 kg
Landing roll distance 30m
Fuel economy 26 l/h
Take-off roll (MTOW, MSL) 180m
Take-off distance
+ 15m obstacle clearance, MTOW**, MSL*** 330m
Max Range
(with ½ hour reserve fuel*, MTOW) 400 km
Max Range
(with ½ hour reserve fuel, single person operation, MSL) 500 km
Max endurance
(with ½ hour reserve fuel, MTOW) 4.3 hours
* ½ hour reserve fuel is 100-150 km of fuel left for driving
** Maximum Take-off Weight
*** Mean Sea Level

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[IshaanIan]

So many promises have come and gone across the world, this one doesn't even come with a non-computer generated image of it in action. First of all they need to sort out the form factor as a 3 wheeler with ghastly protrusions, may not appeal to the public and garner enough enthusiasm or investment, secondly they need to come up with a working prototype that can actually be extensively shown to everyone in action, lastly they need to lobby about to sort out the legalities involved with selling such a product to the public and having them use it. 2021? I HIGHLY doubt that. India cannot even buy its own defense enough 4+ generation medium range multirole combat aircraft, I doubt its public will be flying around in cars anytime soon.

[JS Kwt]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

this one doesn't even come with a non-computer generated image of it in action.

These look like real pics which have also been published on News sites













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Originally Posted by IshaanIan

secondly they need to come up with a working prototype that can actually be extensively shown to everyone in action

This video shows a Pal V in Action

https://youtu.be/_jgyp20f0jU

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

I HIGHLY doubt that. India cannot even buy its own defense enough 4+ generation medium range multirole combat aircraft, I doubt its public will be flying around in cars anytime soon.

Debatable.
Pal V costs 3.5 - 4 crores, definitely cheaper than a Bell single turbine Helicopter.
The uber rich corporate sector which already own private choppers could afford such options for comfort or status.

[Venkatesh]

The PAL-V Liberty, the world’s first commercial flying car, has been approved for road use in Europe. The company says this brings it another step closer to deliveries with the car also undergoing aviation certification with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

Mike Stekelenburg, CEO, PAL-V said: We have been cooperating with the road authorities for many years to reach this milestone. The excitement you feel in the team is huge. It was very challenging to make a ‘folded aircraft’ pass all road admission tests. For me, the trick in successfully making a flying car is to ensure that the design complies with both air and road regulations. I feel the energy and motivation in our team to push hard for the last few milestones and get the Liberty certified for flying too.

https://www.autocarindia.com/car-new...-europe-419034

[carthick1000]

Pal-V has now hired Giordy Wammes, formerly head of Bentley Sweden, as commercial director. According to Pal-V, Wammes is getting busy.

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