Flying cars can be bought already in 2017 at a price of $ 300 thousand, according to the heads of enterprises who have been working on their projects for many years. They are confident that such cars will be bought by wealthy customers who can afford to buy sports cars or yachts. Only strict safety requirements and loss of investor interest can hinder ambitious plans.
Quite a number of small companies around the world are fighting for the opportunity to become pioneers in the flying car market and to gain a foothold in it. According to experts, 2017 will be the turning point for automakers. According to CNN Money, the list of those planning to start producing and selling their flying machines within the next few years includes, for example, the American firm Terrafugia, founded by graduates of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The leaders of the company are confident that they will be able to create a prototype of their flying car already in 2017, with about 100 pre-orders already collected. Slovakia's AeroMobil also plans to complete work on flying cars in 2017 and is taking orders. The same can be said for the PAL-V from the Netherlands. California-based Moller International has even more ambitious plans and plans to start selling aircraft as early as next year, provided the FAO grants the firm all the necessary regulatory approvals.
The main problem for flying cars is the current regulations that do not allow them to be both on public roads and in the air.
It can take years to get the necessary approvals from the air, road and transport departments. “Creating something new that works differently is always more difficult than the generally accepted, permitted things,” admits PAL-V CEO Robert Dingemans. He claims that the helicopter-like vehicle developed by the company fully complies with the road and air regulations of Europe and the United States.
But if at first glance the established regulations may seem like empty obstacles to progress, their main goal is to ensure safety in the air and on the ground.
Indeed, it was only in early May that the prototype AeroMobil 3.0 crashed during a test flight. The pilot was not injured, but the situation clearly demonstrated the need for careful regulation and strict safety requirements. At the same time, AeroMobil was assured that the incident had no impact on the company's plans.
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The danger of running out of budgets
In addition to bureaucratic obstacles, the development of the flying car market may be affected by the lack of funding. After all, the development of such technologies requires constant cash injections. So, AeroMobil recently received about € 2.5 million in investments from the venture capital of the firm, before that the project was fully funded by its CEO and co-founder Yurai Vatsulik. Firm executives expect to be able to find additional investors despite the recent disaster.
Moller International founder Paul Moller said he has spent about $ 200 million developing his aircraft since 1970.
At the same time, he is confident that he will be able to find additional sources of funds for the development of his brainchild. “There is a lot of money in this country,” says Moller. "The main thing is to be able to prove to people that you have a product that will be popular in the future."
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Another obvious challenge for businessmen is finding clients. Some entrepreneurs see the military and law enforcement as their future buyers, while others claim to target wealthy clients and big executives who can afford yachts and supercars.
“Initially, these cars will be bought by people who are interested in new technologies, who are chasing new emotions and who would like to be able to use advanced technologies for their movement,” says the CEO of AeroMobil.
Currently, prices for such "toys" are around $ 300 thousand, but they can vary.
So, the director of PAL-V said that he plans to sell his vehicles at a price of $ 340 thousand, but at the same time it will be possible to order cars from a special series, which will cost about $ 566 thousand. However, all those who are ready to buy a flying car will have to understand that they will not be able to take off and land wherever they want. Many of these flying cars will need runways or even entire airports.
Note that Russian specialists are also interested in creating cars that can move through the air. Moreover, according to experts of the profile portal Aircargonews, it is Russia that is the leader in this direction.
The Russian AVTOL project, led by engineer Merzlyakov, provides for three modifications of flying cars.
So, AVTOL-1 is a device that can not only travel on ordinary roads, but also develop supersonic speed in the air. The car named AVTOL-2 can reach speeds of up to 800 km / h, and the maximum speed of the AVTOL-3 model is 400 km / h. In 2014, Russian design bureaus invited the Russian Defense Ministry to join the development of flying cars. However, since then there has been no news about this project.
It is known that at the moment prototypes are undergoing flight tests, which should be completed in the summer of 2015. Now the project is being approved on the choice of the place of production. The production of flying cars may soon start in Dagestan or Tatarstan. According to preliminary data, the cost of the serial Russian "auto-flight" will be 1.5 million rubles.