The SkyCar

Dan2nd · 21-05-2008, 01:18 PM

I don't think this has been posted

If you have a spare $995,000 hidden somewhere why not purchase the worlds first flying car.

Originally Posted by http://www.moller.com/skycar.htm

Moller International has developed the first and only feasible, personally affordable, personal vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) vehicle the world has ever seen.

You've always known it was just a matter of time before the world demanded some kind of flying machine which would replace the automobile. Of course, this machine would have to be capable of VTOL, be easy to maintain, cost effective and reliable. Well, we at Moller International believe we have come up with the solution. That solution is the volantor named M400 Skycar.

Let's compare the M400 Skycar with what's available now, the automobile. Take the most technologically advanced automobile, the Ferrari, Porsche, Maserati, Lamborgini, or the more affordable Acura, Accord, or the like. It seems like all of the manufacturers of these cars are touting the new and greatly improved "aerodynamics" of their cars. Those in the aerospace industry have been dealing with aerodynamics from the start. In the auto industry they boast of aerodynamics, performance tuned wide track suspensions, electronic ignition and fuel injection systems, computer controllers, and the list goes on. What good does all this "advanced engineering" do for you when the speed limit is around 60 MPH and you are stuck on crowded freeways anyway?

Can any automobile give you this scenario? From your garage to your destination, the M400 Skycar can cruise comfortably at 275 MPH (maximum speed of 375 MPH) and achieve up to 20 miles per gallon on clean burning, ethanol fuel. No traffic, no red lights, no speeding tickets. Just quiet direct transportation from point A to point B in a fraction of the time. Three dimensional mobility in place of two dimensional immobility.

No matter how you look at it the automobile is only an interim step on our evolutionary path to independence from gravity. That's all it will ever be.

Moller International's M400 Skycar volantor is the next step.

Perhaps before you purchase you want to know more about the specs:

Ah! Maybe safety is on your mind don't worry people each of the four passengers who will be able to ride in the SkyCar will be protected by no, not air bags! but Parachutes!

-- Even in the instance of complete power loss you and your passengers are protected. The two airframe parachutes, front and rear, will guide the volantor safely and comfortably to the ground without incidence and can be deployed in the event of a critical failure of the aircraft. With the parachutes, the pilot, passengers and the Skycar can be recovered safely. Parachutes developed for the ultra-light aircraft industry, that are ballistically ejected, have demonstrated reliable vehicle recovery above 150 feet. Recovery is possible at a much lower altitude if the aircraft has a modest forward velocity or if a spreader gun is used to spread the parachute canopy. The best primary system should use the minimum number of engines necessary together with sufficient power to hover after the failure of one engine. A multi-engine system also interfaces well with a back-up parachute system since the time between consecutive engine failures should allow sufficient opportunity for the parachute to be deployed. A single engine failure in a VTOL aircraft with eight independent ducts and one engine per duct would require 54% reserve power in order to continue to hover. The same number of engines arranged in four nacelles with two engines per nacelle requires 36% reserve power to accommodate an engine failure. The safe operation of a VTOL aircraft requires that during hover it operate as close to the ground as possible (<25 ft.) and that transition to forward flight occur as quickly as possible. With the loss of an engine at 25-ft altitude the vehicle could be landed very quickly without incident. Above 25 ft altitude one can assume that the vehicle is moving forward and generating some aerodynamic lift so that a second engine failure should not be as critical. In the case where a critical number of engines fail and transition is not complete, aerodynamic lift can extend the flight time in the critical period before the parachute is fully deployed. Thus, deployment could occur at relatively low altitudes (<25 ft.) particularly if a spreader gun is used. In any case, a new concept aircraft can be expected to undergo the unexpected. Thus, overlapping systems to ensure passenger safety would be appropriate and should be mandatory

So watch those skys people because you may spot one of these babies wizzing through the air!