A Chinese firm has purchased the technology behind a BMW-powered flying automobile that has been successfully test-flown in Europe.
The flying automobile, often called the AirCar, is a Slovakian-designed two-passenger vehicle with 4 wheels that transforms right into a road-legal vehicle on the bottom in just below three minutes.
The AirCar comes with a pusher propeller, switchblade-style retractable wings and a telescoping tail. It’s able to flying about 600 miles at a height of 8,200 feet and was developed by Professor Stefan Klein and its co-founder, Anton Zajac of Klein Vision.
The technology behind the flying automobile has now been bought by Hebei Jianxin Flying Automobile Technology Company, headquartered in Cangzhou, Klein Vision has announced.
The firm purchased exclusive rights to fabricate and use AirCar aircraft inside an undisclosed area. The corporate has built its own airport and flight school after a previous acquisition from one other Slovak aircraft manufacturer.
A Chinese company has purchased the European-designed technology behind a BMW-powered flying automobile that has been successfully test-flown in Europe. ABACA / Reuters
The prototype cost a reported $2.3 million to develop, however it is unclear how much Hebei Jianxin paid for the technology.
“The deal, finalized for an undisclosed amount, marks a strategic move within the advancement of revolutionary mobility solutions,” Klein Vision said in a press release.
“This licensing agreement grants the Chinese company exclusive rights to fabricate and distribute certified flying cars utilizing KleinVision’s cutting-edge technology inside a selected countryside. The Jianxin Group is poised to leverage this groundbreaking technology to redefine transportation standards in China.”
The technology behind a BMW-powered European flying automobile has been purchased by a Chinese company, based on a report. ABACA / Reuters
The automobile has a BMW engine and even runs off petrol-pump fuel, however it takes way more than that for it to take flight into the air.
When on the bottom, the vehicle looks like a contemporary sports automobile, with the wings folded easily down the side – it takes two minutes and 15 seconds to show into an aircraft from sports automobile mode, Reuters reports.
AirCar has a hard and fast propeller on the back, in addition to a ballistic parachute for any emergencies.
A pilot driving the AirCar. ABACA / Reuters
Unlike drone-taxis, AirCar is unable to take off or land vertically and requires a runway – much like a plane. AirCar is barely able to carrying two individuals with a combined weight of 31 stone, or about 430 kilos.
China is embracing flying automobile technology. Last 12 months, a “flying automobile” made by China’s Xpeng Aeroht made its first public flight in Dubai.
Meanwhile, a California company that’s constructing a flying electric automobile began taking preorders last 12 months.
Alef Aeronautics’ flying automobile has been given a special airworthiness certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), meaning the corporate shall be allowed to road/air test the automobile, the corporate said in a news release.
Fox News’ Gary Gastelu and Reuters contributed to this report.