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Uber Hires a Nasa Veteran Who Thinks We'll Start Seeing Flying Cars In Next Three Years (bloomberg.com)
Uber is getting serious about its intentions of building a flying car. Uber's plan involves airborne taxis that will travel 50 to 100 miles between "vertiports" that connect passengers between their homes and offices, according to a report on Bloomberg. Now it is hiring the right leader for this project. From the report: In 2010, an advanced aircraft engineer at NASA's Langley Research Center named Mark Moore published a white paper outlining the feasibility of electric aircrafts that could take off and land like helicopters but were smaller and quieter. The vehicles would be capable of providing a speedy alternative to the dreary morning commute. Moore's research into so-called VTOL -- short for vertical takeoff and landing, or more colloquially, flying cars -- inspired at least one billionaire technologist. After reading the white paper, Google co-founder Larry Page secretly started and financed two Silicon Valley startups, Zee Aero and Kitty Hawk, to develop the technology. Now Moore is leaving the confines of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, where he has spent the last 30 years, to join one of Google's rivals: Uber Technologies Inc. Moore is taking on a new role as director of engineering for aviation at the ride-hailing company, working on a flying car initiative known as Uber Elevate. "I can't think of another company in a stronger position to be the leader for this new ecosystem and make the urban electric VTOL market real," he says.
Its not a flying car if it doesn't drive on the streets. Otherwise we'd be calling helicopters flying cars.. So no, VTOL does not mean flying car.
yea and there still classed as light aircraft and fall under the same regulations
They can build something that can fly itself and take you from point A to point B.
What they can't do and what will take years and years is the infrastructure. Remember the Jetsons? Ya...they were following "roads".
The rules and regulations to manage millions of aircraft flying pilotlessly from point A to point B hasn't even been dreamed of yet, never mind rationally though out.
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
I don't agree that a flying car has to also drive on the ground. I think the general idea of a flying car is something that is affordable by more families and as easy to use as a car. A helicopter is omitted from that because it is expensive, requires the knowledge of an airline pilot, and can obviously not be driven by the average person. I think more like the cars in the Jetsons.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
and told you it was chocolate milk, would you believe them? 10 out of 10 tech reporters answered a resounding yes.
Rolling on a surface is pretty energy efficient - the power requirements for flying are much, much higher.
Safety & FAA regulatory issues aside, this is always going to cost a LOT more than ground transportation- for fuel costs alone.
This may end up being the rich man's tool when a limo is too slow, but a charter aircraft overkill.
“I can’t think of another company in a stronger position to be the leader for this new ecosystem and make the urban electric VTOL market real,” he says.
That's because of Uber's strong engineering track record, civic integration, and long history of co-operation with governmental agencies.
sigs are for losers (except to point out that sigs are for losers)
How about... no.
People cannot handle flying cars. They either will be so drunk, they will be unable to figure out which way is down, be texting while their altimeter is spinning its way towards zero, or trying to aim their car at a government building, Joseph Stack style.
Then there is maintenance and inspections. It costs a lot to keep a plane inspected.
Helicopters can fly anywhere because they cost millions of dollars, and only a tiny minority of companies and billionaires own them. If anyone suggested several hundred million should take to the sky on a daily basis, we would have to change the regulations concerning them.
Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.