Flying cars have been the stuff of dreams and imagination for decades.
However, there might be hope on the horizon for fans of The Jetsons and Star Wars. Netherlands-based company PAL-V might have developed a flying car fit for both the roads and skies alike.
Using a gyrocopter as a basis, the PAL-V Liberty seats two people in a completely enclosed cockpit and can transition from flying to driving in six minutes. PAL-V’s UK Country Manager, Andy Wall, told us all about the unusual machine at the inaugural Salon Prive car show in London.
According to Wall, the Liberty had to overcome a range of challenges to meet European safety certifications such as having two separate fuel tanks for flying and driving.
However, with those hurdles now cleared, PAL-V is working up to start commercialising the Liberty and selling it to interested customers of which, says Wall, there are many.
Prospective buyers might be looking for a little number to hop across the English Channel to their Parisian Pied à Terre, for example. Otherwise, there are a range of business applications for the Liberty. Coast guards, for instance, might be sold on the idea of quickly being able to cover ground from the sky before switching to driving to access locations inaccessible to aircraft. Wall even reckons that some police forces might be interested in the utility of PAL-V’s flying car.
At the Salon Prive show, the Liberty was certainly turning heads – even with millions of pounds worth of classic cars sitting on the lawn outside Royal Hospital Chelsea.
However, we weren’t just catching up with Wall and PAL-V at the show. Auto Futures also got the low-down on why Genesis operates with a unique business model in Europe and why Charge Cars is building brand new versions of classic Mustangs with electric powertrains.
