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Video Purports To Show Successful Hover Bike Test Flights
Zothecula writes "Videos released by California-based tech research company Aerofex appear to show successful test flights of a prototype hover bike that gains lift from two large ducted rotors. Aeroflex claims its hover bike allows the pilot intuitive control over pitch, roll and yaw without need of artificial intelligence, flight software or electronics of any kind."
And somehow, for some reason of time rather garbled and strange, this seems so boring in comparison to this wonderful antique: Williams WASP X-Jet
I'm not saying I don't want one, but if given the choice....
Forward! -- Emperor Norton, 2012
A small hovercraft without a skirt!
Yawn. Ground effect only. That's not flying.
And, so what? It's called a hover bike not a 'flying' bike.
A flying bike would require ridiculous thrust if it were made out of something more substantial than balsa wood. I doubt you'd want to ride something like that without an enclosed cockpit.
The article claims they flew it at 15 ft, and that they think they can way higher like 10,000 ft: if true that's definitely not just ground effect, but unfortunately video doesn't even show the 15 ft trials, only hovering really close to the ground. I would expect them to show off their top tests too.
The think I'm mostly wondering about is stability. How do they do that? Hovercrafts are notorious for their instability, especially smaller craft. Flying them is a tough balancing act.
At least the videos look genuine to me, so it seems to be a real product. Oh well, time will tell how true it all is.
The terrain looks suspiciously like the surface of Mars. Don't be a sucker. This could not work in Earth gravity.
They sure went to a lot of trouble for a fake product.
Registering their website in 1997, going to conferences in 2012.
That's the kind of trolling that takes planning and dedication
Future Vertical Lift Aircraft Design Conference 2012 (PDF)
3:30 PM - 4:00 PM Thrust Augmentation & Control of Ducted-Fan VTOL Air-Vehicles -- Mark De Roche, Aerofex Corporation
[Fuck Beta]
o0t!
This looks suspiciously like the Black Rock desert in Nevada. About a hundred miles North and a little East of Reno, near the town of Gerlach.
The place is the largest section of "flat" in the US. It's the remains of a prehistoric lake (Lahontan) that has dried up, leaving behind a perfectly flat dried mud surface.
It's where the land-speed records are set. It's where amateur rockets are launched. It's where Burning Man is held.
Unlike most hovercraft this looks like it has decent control.
Huh? I watched the video twice and didn't see any impressive braking or steering. Or speed.
All I saw was a guy driving like he was constantly worried about falling into the whirling blades six inches under his feet.
No sig today...