NBC News Mach by Tom Metcalfe / Oct.12.2018
The car-plane hybrid goes on sale in 2019, but experts say air taxis might steal its thunder.
It might not the most elegant-looking thing on the road or in the sky, but an automobile-airplane hybrid that’s being called the world's first practical flying car is almost ready to spread its wings.
The two-passenger Transition will go on sale in the U.S. next year at an estimated price of $400,000, according to Terrafugia, the Woburn, Massachusetts-based firm that makes it.
The Transition has four wheels, folding wings and a rear-mounted “pusher†propeller. Powered by a four-cylinder hybrid-electric engine, it can fly 100 miles an hour at altitudes of up to 9,000 feet, with a flying range of 400 miles. There are controls for both flying and driving: for the roads, conventional brake and accelerator pedals and a steering wheel; for flying, the usual yoke and rudder pedals.
The vehicle converts from driving to flying mode in less than a minute, according to Terrafugia.
More:
https://www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/terrafugia-transition-means-long-wait-flying-cars-almost-over-ncna919211
