Top 10 Mini Aircraft and Flying Car Inventions for Personal Air Travel

Our cities are turning into huge human hives, where transportation usually becomes associated with hours being stuck in traffic or waiting for overcrowded public buses and trains.

Taking this fact into consideration and being inspired by the science fiction concepts, engineers are trying to rethink the way we travel and fulfill the future of flying cars, personal mini aircraft and vertical take-off and landing passenger drones. In this episode we will show you the most recent and promising models that are expected to hit the skies as early as 2020.

Previous #AutomotiveTerritory releases that you may find useful:

New helicopters that you should know about: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLQcpoURO7k

Personal mini jets that currently exist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDrZWs8ZLIg

All of the inventions featured in this episode of the #ATAircraft series:

Astro ELROY: flyastro.com

This personal electric VTOL was first announced as Passenger Drone by the company of the same name in May 2017. However, soon after the first test flights, it was sold to Astro, where it is now being developed under the name of Elroy.

Cora by Kitty Hawk: cora.aero

Cora by Kitty Hawk is a two-passenger all-electric aircraft with self-piloting and VTOL capabilities. Cora is currently tested in New Zealand, and it is planned become the base vehicle for an air taxi service that will be launched in the following 5 years.

Flyer by Kitty Hawk: flyer.aero

Flyer by Kitty Hawk is an all-electric ultralight one-seater aircraft designed for people with no flying experience.

Koncepto Millenya: www.facebook.com/konceptomillenya

Developed by the Filipino former hip-hop dancer Kyxz Mendiola, Koncepto Millenya is a passion project of a man who got tired of city traffic.

BlackFly: opener.aero

After 9 years under development, BlackFly was introduced in 2018 as the world’s first ultralight fixed-wing, all-electric, vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

Vertical Aerospace: vertical-aerospace.com/about

Vertical Aerospace is a Bristol-based startup that built and showcased a real, flight-capable VTOL vehicle within the last year. The company plans to launch an air taxi service in the UK by 2022.

Rolls-Royce EVTOL Concept: rolls-royce.com/media/our-stories/discover/2018/blue-sky-thinking-rr-unveils-evtol-concept-at-farnborough-airshow.aspx

Rolls-Royce EVTOL Concept is a flying automobile concept that will accommodate up to 5 passengers and will be suitable for a wide range of applications, including personal use, public and cargo transportation, and military missions.

Hybrid AeroMobil 4.0: aeromobil.com/flying-car

There aren’t many road legal automobiles that can simply take off from the highway and fly into the sky, but Aeromobil gets close to this description. It will be released by 2020 and will be powered by a hybrid powertrain.

Aston Martin Volante Vision Concept: global.astonmartin.com/en-us/the-aston-martin-volante-vision-concept

Even though, Aston Martin designers have been really busy lately, they still managed to spare some time and develop a conceptual VTOL in cooperation with Cranfield Aerospace Solutions, Cranfield University and Rolls-Royce. The three-seater aircraft was named Volante Vision.

Workhorse Surefly: workhorse.com/surefly

Workhorse is not stopping at building the electric pickup truck, they intend to use electric propulsion knowledge in building a two-seat hybrid eVTOL vehicle. Surefly is lifted in the air by a pair of counter rotating propellers which are located at the end of four arms.

Pop.Up Next: italdesign.it/project/pop-up-next

Airbus CityAirbus: airbus.com/newsroom/press-releases/en/2017/10/cityairbus-demonstrator-passes-major-propulsion-testing-mileston.html

Uber Air: uber.com/info/elevate

The majority of flying car projects in our video are either one-off concepts from car makers or startups by the young and ambitious companies. However, these three models are being designed by the current giant of transportation Uber, Airbus, Italdesign, Audi.