Miniature Flying Car Receives US Airspace Approval For Testing

An anonymous reader writes: The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has this month approved test flights for a one-tenth scale version of Terrafugia's flying car. The team behind TF-X, patented in 2011, will see the two-foot-long unmanned aircraft headed to the skies. The scale model is permitted to reach a maximum height of 121 meters, and a maximum speed of 100mph. While it is allowed to use U.S. air space, the team must be in constant communication with FAA authorities. The data collected during the special FAA-approved test runs will help Terrafugia plan the future development of design for its flying cars. The testing will also allow the engineers to assess the hovering capabilities of the drone.

Comments

Comic relief

[Tough Love]

Thanks for that. A good laugh once a day makes you live longer. Amongst the innumerable aerodynamic engineering issues:

  - Center of gravity is well forward of center of lift, so the only possible stable flying attitude is straight down

  - Wing loading is off the end of the scale. If you put a big enough engine on it, anything will fly - this one would would stall somewhere over 300 Mph, if it could ever fly straight that is, which is doubtful. Too bad it's limited to 200 Mph, I guess it's a helicopter after all.

  - Vertical and horizontal stabilizers are miniscule and tucked away in the turbulence of the fuselage. Control surfaces are apparently nonexistent. To get an idea how that might work, tie a string to a shoe box and fly it as a kite while driving down the freeway.

  - How much will those retractable engine engine covers weigh, if they ever exist? Which they never will.

  - Where are the roof racks? It needs root racks. And a trailer hitch.

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