You are missing the point of a "flying car". It lands at an AIRPORT, converts to car mode, and DRIVES to the mall with no props spinning.

Thus the main point is that a flying car has to be more convenient than a rental or Uber to make any sort of sense.

Which it doesn't, really. A flying car is a very bad airplane that becomes a very bad car. Much better to fly a good airplane and then rent/hail a good car.

Mike C.

Where do you shower? Brush your teeth? Breakfast?

You gonna sleep all the way home too? Now a trip that would take hours by GA takes 2 nights on the road by autonomous car?

How do you handle door dings and fender benders? Curb rash? All would render it un-airworthy.

Not only that, if I still need to use an airport..... they have rental cars.

A flying car is both a crappy airplane and a crappy car. It's good at nothing.

Flying cars of the type the "visionaries" are hawking are a fantasy.

At least until someone comes up with clean and green anti-gravity generators.

I think the 500 miles trip might be a bit on the high end for me personally but it could be done. However I think the self driving car makes great sense at the 300-400 mile range for me. For example I go to Dallas multiple times a year its about 330 miles one way on the road. This trip takes me 4.5-5 hours generally if I take my truck.

With Southwest Airlines it takes about the same amount of time. 1 hour drive to the airport. Park car, navigate to the terminal ride shuttle etc 30 mins. Security 30 mins. Arrive at the gate 1 hour early for the flight. Just over 1 hour flight time. 30 minutes to get off the plane and get to the rental counter. 30 minutes to rent the car, find the car, get in the car and on the road. Then depending on the time of the day 30 minutes to 1 hour to get to my final destination. All in generally 5-5.5 hours door to door. Even though the time is the same the stress level is much less on SWA vs my truck. But it costs more than my truck especially when you figure in transportation on the other end.

In my bonanza my preferred method today. It takes me about 15 minutes to get to the plane. 30 min to preflight, taxi run up etc. Call the flight time around 2 hours. Its around 1:45 but it always seems to end up being right at 2:00. Securing the plane, watching them add fuel for the return trip, getting the rental or waiting for an Uber etc. generally takes me 30 minutes at best 45 at worst. Then add at least 1 hour of drive time. Door to door is generally 4 hours on average I would say.

So on average flying my bonanza saves me 30 minutes to 1 hour each way on this trip. And saves me 1-1.5 hours vs. flying commercial. However flying my bonanza is by far the most expensive way to make this trip. Its also currently the most convenient and flexible option I have.

The main reason I fly this trip is because I hate to drive up I-35. Honestly I don't like driving long distances at all because I am spoiled by GA. But now lets say I can get in my truck/car, type in an address, and sit back and for the most part relax while my car does the work. Even if I can't go to sleep in the back seat, even if I can't watch a movie, or whatever else and need to be somewhat engaged with the driving. Now making this trip on the road becomes much more attractive to me. I probably start picking the self driving option, even over flying my plane more often then I currently do at least. Why?

1) Time difference is negligible, and the self driving car might even compete with the door to door time better since I might not stop as much to stretch or take a break.
2) Cheaper cost
3) No stressing about the weather days before the trip
4) Don't have to update my GPS, make sure I am current, file a flight plan, deal with ATC in Dallas or have any of the other hassles.
5) I can work on the way. Making phone calls, sending texts, etc, assuming this will be legal and that the car is autonomous enough for this to be done safely. These things are possible in my plane but not really practical because I frequently loose signal, or get interrupted by ATC etc.

I am sure there are more reasons but for this 300 mile trip the self driving car would probably make the most sense. It would defiantly be better than SWA. And other than the "I just love to fly" reason, it makes more sense then jumping in the bonanza. Even if I fly my bonanza up or drive I generally spend a night in a hotel anyway. So that would likely not change even in a self driving car. I just think the self driving revolution that is about to happen will have a huge impact on GA and regional commercial air travel. People will still fly but the shorter trips will be more reasonable and attractive by road once people don't have to do the driving.

Having spent years on night trains in Europe and Asia, and a few in Lat Am (just say no), it isn't the modality that makes it unattractive it is all the other factors, especially you just don't sleep well when moving on the ground. Even in the nicest of coaches--flat bed, private bathroom, etc. An overnight is not something you would not want to do regularly.

For the idea of a mass-market flying car, in my view its a pipe-dream. Look at the proposed business cases: time to production volumes are unrealistic, costs are substantially under estimated (therefore the cost to own is rarely realistic, and will go much higher). Then there is the infrastructure: The FAA is not ready, ATC is not ready, zoning laws prohibit most VTOLs from being anywhere in a town. I could go on. Think about electric vehicles for a moment: love them or hate them, it is still a niche. Mass production has proven far harder than optimists expected, and even if they "were here," the grid isn't ready. Those challenges are a fraction of the challenges facing flying cars. Love the idea, but the delivery time of this technology is many decades away.

You're just not visionary enough. Anti-gravity generators exist but they've been kept down by a cabal.

You're just not visionary enough. Anti-gravity generators exist but they've been kept down by a cabal.

Is that technology the plastic balloons, the balsa and foil radar reflectors or the low frequency microphones?

For the same thread.....

This flying boat replaces boats. Why won't it work? and how do they do it with a 500HP V8?
http://www.wigetworks.com/airfish-8/

[youtube]https://youtu.be/Ko6aCLVDUYM[/youtube]

the russians had those ground-effect craft back in the 60's. Some of them were enormous.

This ground effect craft looks a lot more useful then the Icon. The Russian one had a top speed of 340 mph! They needed a high powered radar to track surface vessels. Rushing up on a container ship under IFR conditions would get your attention.

the best possible flying car is still going to be like camping and eating your food with a spork. It's terrible as a spoon, even worse as a fork, but it's one less thing you have to carry with you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8Nu94khHoo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_symWK4T7n0

Mike C.