(Image credit: Alef)
A new type of flying car that has been cleared for use on public roads is closer to hitting the streets and skies after manufacturer Alef Aeronautics partnered with aerospace companies PUCARA Aero and MYC to develop it.
The company says the Alef Model A can function as both a road vehicle and an airplane, and is designed to help reduce traffic congestion.
The retro-styled flying car Model A will be all-electric and capable of vertical takeoff and landing. During flight, the chassis can rotate 90 degrees to become a large fixed wing for aerodynamic flight, and the car's body is made of mesh, allowing air to pass through it during flight.
While the body rotates, the “cockpit” portion of the vehicle remains stationary to provide stability for the pilot. “To achieve good range, you need good aeronautics, and that means wings,” Jim Duchovny, founder and CEO of Alef Aeronautics, told CNN.
“When you tilt, when you do a maneuver, you become like a biplane, you actually have two wings – an upper wing and a lower wing – which makes it incredibly efficient, extremely battery efficient and gives you the ability to fly long distances.”
Taking to the skies in retro style
Unlike other flying car prototypes, the Alef Model A is a single-seater vehicle, so it is not being considered as a taxi or passenger-carrying vehicle. In 2023, Alef Aeronautics told CNN that the car would have a road range of 200 miles (321 kilometers) between charges, while its flight range would be 110 miles (177 kilometers). On the road, it would be able to reach a top speed of 25 miles per hour (40 kilometers per hour) — below the minimum speed limit for highways in states like Florida.
Engineers have been working on the craft since 2015, when Alef Aeronautics was founded. Although they initially hoped to build it in just six months, it wasn’t until 2019 that a pilot first flew a full-scale prototype.
Sourse: www.livescience.com
