Jalopnik
It's a Carver. Wait, it's a gyroscope. No, it's both. It's called the PAL-V and it stands for Personal Air and Land Vehicle and it's supposedly going to be built very soon by a company named PAL-V Europe BV. What we think is it looks like it's the next flying car nearing production we fear will never end up being built. Based on the Carver One tri-wheel car, the PAL-V supposedly will use the same Dynamic Vehicle Control (DVC) system that keeps the Carver going straight and true in turns. That system automatically adjusts the tilt angle of the cockpit to the speed and acceleration of the vehicle enabling what the folks behind this device-to-never-be call "a plane-like tilting before cornering." That's great and all — but how does it fly? Simple — all they need to do is drop a set of gyrocopter blades on top. Sure, why not? Jeez — why do we continue to follow this dream...
...when all these companies just continue to tease us? Whether it's Moller and their amazing UFO flying disc-car supposedly entering production, the X-Hawk supposedly ready to be ready by 2009 or the sweetly tantalizing finds of Google Earth — we just end up getting our hopes up and then have them dashed like leaves in the backwash of a jet engine. Heck, we even got all excited about GM's flying car marketing campaign — if only as an escapist fantasy. Maybe we shouldn't be getting so down on ourselves — we mean, Good Morning America just covered the Moller — maybe it really will be built. Yeah, we'll believe it when one's parked outside our door. [PAL-V]
Comments
I commute in DC...
I want this!
I need this!
Oh. Except for the fact that the entire region is one big ass no fly zone.
What supposedly holds on the front tire? Magic I suppose?
M-M-M-Mask!
Being an auto industry minion, friends will ask me when will there be flying cars. I usually ask them to envision their morning commute and fellow motorists...up in the air.
And I love how this concept is relying on being a helicopter type aircraft, which is not one of the most user friendly of flying vehicles.
@zero_o: You're very close. It's basically PFM technology.
Pure. Fucking. Magic.
I hope it doesn't get built.
Most drivers cant understand driving in TWO dimensions, let alone three.
Imagine the mayhem that could occur when Suzie Soccermom is chatting on her cell phone in her flying car and encounters Larry Laptop checking his email at 3000 feet!
Now imagine that they are flying above the Ferrari dealership when they collide.
You'll be forced to drive to the airport in order to take off, eh.
I love flying cars as much as the next guy - and I'd get my helicopter license just to get one of these, but I think we can safely say that this will never happen. Unlike other efforts to create flying vehicles, this is much more complex from an engineering standpoint, and of course raises so many more issues from a licensing and flight certification standpoint that it's a complete pipe-dream.
@EVOCS It's actually a gyrocopter, rather than a helicopter. Important distinction. Gyros give you a lot of the same short take-off/landing benefits as helicopters, but with less mechanical complexity and more airplane-like handling. They do tend to have some instability issues in pitch, which I would hope would be sorted out before production.
I'd love to have something like this though. Even if you have to land at an airport and drive to your destination, it still would open up a massive swath of land as a reasonable commute. The eco-freaks will probably have a green cow when they realize the alleged environmental impact of people now living 150 miles from their jobs and commuting by air, but really who cares about those loons anyway.
FLY to work or play! Miracle Acrylic bubble makes it possible!
@cafn8: that was exactly the first thing i thought when i saw the pictures.
@shdwcaster: Thanks for clearing that up for me.
@MobileMilitia: Finally, somebody from my generation who watched as much TV as I did growing up!
sweet now with the help of that blade ontop you can mow down an entire sidewalk of walking types when you doze off at the wheel
Car-ebral PAL-V.
Oh, yeah, we need clouds of these things divebombing into the I-95 backup.
I love two things about all fo these flying car announcements. First: gotta love the crappy 3rd grader level photoshopping that they all seem to rely on to market their product.
Second: whenever I think it would be cool to have a flying car, I then think about the morning's commute and how many accidents I saw. Oh well. We can all dream.
so long as I can have a flying car, and you're all stuck on the ground, life will be good. Letting all you morons up in the air is just asking for disaster.
All I really want is a big ol' pickemup truck with a monster V blade on the front. That clears traffic. Especially in July.
*NOTE: for the purposes of this post, I and you refer to the Jalopnik reading and non-Jalopnik reading public, respectivly.
@biminitwst:
It would start the "Save the Enzos" campaign anew.
@ RESPAWN
agreed. about three years ago we did a project in school for a guy who had invested millions over 30 years to make a flying car. the thing looked like a limp cartoon dog, so we made it better looking, gave it some decent animations, fixed the wing configuration and a few other engineering problems (we are not engineers- industrial designers) and overall improved the product 10 fold.
he went back to his original idea and the engineering firm he was working with. the reason why a flying car will never be made by these guys (beyond the safety, regulations, etc.) is that they're all too attached to THEIR idea of what it should be. So they hire questionable engineering firms that follow their every whit and whim (which are constantly changing or impossible to reach at this time) and you get this kind of crap.
Flydrives are for mid to longrange,they should drive u throug bad weather, get u home not stuck from u´r agenda and get u to the place u want to go and not to the nearest airport, where u stranded more or less. Driveable flyers are not massmotoring shorters.so the should be good airplanes for pilotes wich can drive them home o.k.Put better wheels on a cessna and a thielert modern aircraft diesel with good milage in it. Fold wings and extend tail, maybe duck type,and we have a plane any pilote would love to have...me first ;-)Gerd
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