Buy a Moller SkyCar Prototype on eBay 178
HobbySpacer writes "Moller International has announced that it will offer its first working Skycar for sale on eBay starting January 31st - Press Release. The M400P prototype has repeatedly flown short hovering flights on tethers in tests since 2001 (see videos). The company warns that although '[a]ll systems are operational. Potential buyers are cautioned that this is a prototype model and considered an experimental aircraft.' Also, 'the Skycar has not yet been approved as a road vehicle.' A more powerful 2nd gen production version is currently under construction for longer untethered test flights this year."
Re:Um... why? (Score:1, Informative)
It is poweree by 4 rotary engines, and if any one fail, you will fall to the ground. The engine is a new and not very well tested type. Let's assume you are lucky, and each engine only fails every 4000 hours, your skycar will suffer a catasrophic crash every 1000 hours. And that is just the engines!!. A plane and even a helicopter can glide to a controlled ground impact. This will not.
Statistically you will be much safer as a bull rider in a rodeo.
Re:So, u can buy a jestson's car now? (Score:4, Informative)
In case the sarcasm tag wasn't on, I no more believe that Moller can actually make a reliable flying car that gets 28mpg (running on good old Texaco Regular of course) @ 350mph @ 20k feet @ 65dba than they could accomplish the aforementioned mass-reduction-briefcase trick.
What they will offer is a hunk of red, expensive vaporware that sits in your garage like the Russian shuttle [floridatoday.com] they tried to sell on ebay a year or so ago.
Maybe ebay should have a "got too much money sitting around?" section....
Re:Is there any other footage of the tests? (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Uhm... (Score:2, Informative)
Well, the fact that it's considered an experimental aircraft does not necessarily mean it's unsafe. Just by the fact that it's flown (tethered or not) I'm sure that they've gone through the design process many times over.
I used to fly Cessnas, and while I was at the airport, I'd frequently see a canard-style plane that was rated as experimental simply because it was a kit plane and the owner built it in his garage. The plane was not unsafe; the owner told me that it had excellent stall characteristics, that it gave a smoother ride than most conventional small planes he's been in, and that it was generally easier to fly because it had better visibility in all directions. Also, a friend of my father is building an amphibious plane in his garage, and once he gets it flying, it will be also be considered experimental simply because it's a kit plane. The plans for the particular model he's making are constantly changing, and many of the minor changes are his doing because he found better ways to build it as he progressed.
Sorry for such a long post, I just wanted to clear up any confusion you had about 'experimental' meaning 'untested', because they are VERY different terms.
Re:Moller...bwahahahahaha (Score:4, Informative)
When you get close to the ground (one chance!) you convert the rotational energy into lift. You retwist the blades generating enough lift to slow you to landing speed.
I've only watched practice sessions. But I think the next step is to change your shorts.
Re:OK.... (Score:3, Informative)
<DISCLAIMER TYPE="LONGWINDED,DUMB">
Note that I am not an FAA representative; if you want to license your airplane, talk to someone who is. I take no responsibility for anyone trying to replicate the Spruce Goose in their spare time, then flying it, crashing, and saying "It's OK, I read it on Slashdot"! Don't be a moron. Please.
</DISCLAIMER>
Not anywhere (Score:3, Informative)
"No person may operate an aircraft that has an experimental certificate over a densely populated area or in a congested airway"
This includes over large cities and congested airspace within (usually) 30 miles of a large airport.
Re:OK.... (Score:3, Informative)
A homebuilt/amateur-built aircraft - otherwise known as experimental - is one that the builder builds 51% of the aircraft.
They must be inspected by an FAA Inspector or a Designated Inspector (essentially the same, similar to a contract position) in order to get an airworthiness certificate. You cannot expect to get away with slapping a gyrocopter blade on your lawnmower and flying around Podunk, Iowa (Not legally, anyways).
Per the Experimental Aircraft Association [eaa.org]
The builder(s) must provide logs of when, where and how construction took place, along with supporting documents and photographs. If the aircraft passes this inspection, a pilot must fly between 25-40 hours of test flights in specific non-populated areas to make sure all components are operating properly. Only after that test time is flown may passengers be flown in the aircraft.
Anyway, in reference to the question about where you could operate this contraption at.... In accordance with federal aviation reg (FAR) 91.319, you and your skycar would be limited to joyrides (no charging!) over non-dense population areas (no flying through downtown Manhattan) operations in visual conditions during the day only.
Densely populated areas are shown on aviation sectional charts as yellow (that's the shape the lights of the city look like at night from altitude) so as long as you avoid those you should be ok. You might want to check with your local FAA Flight Standards District Office [faa.gov] (FSDO - pronounced "Fizz-do") to get the information straight from the horse's mouth, legal-wise.
As far as the regs go, FAR91.119 states
Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:
(a) Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.
(b) Over congested areas. Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.
(c) Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.
(d) Helicopters. Helicopters may be operated at less than the minimums prescribed in paragraph (b) or (c) of this section if the operation is conducted without hazard to persons or property on the surface. In addition, each person operating a helicopter shall comply with any routes or altitudes specifically prescribed for helicopters by the Administrator.