Video Purports To Show Successful Hover Bike Test Flights 112
Zothecula writes "Videos released by California-based tech research company Aerofex appear to show successful test flights of a prototype hover bike that gains lift from two large ducted rotors. Aeroflex claims its hover bike allows the pilot intuitive control over pitch, roll and yaw without need of artificial intelligence, flight software or electronics of any kind."
Re:In other news... (Score:5, Informative)
They sure went to a lot of trouble for a fake product.
Registering their website in 1997, going to conferences in 2012.
That's the kind of trolling that takes planning and dedication
Future Vertical Lift Aircraft Design Conference 2012 [vtol.org] (PDF)
3:30 PM - 4:00 PM Thrust Augmentation & Control of Ducted-Fan VTOL Air-Vehicles -- Mark De Roche, Aerofex Corporation
Mars? No. Nevada? Yes. (Score:5, Informative)
This looks suspiciously like the Black Rock desert in Nevada. About a hundred miles North and a little East of Reno, near the town of Gerlach.
The place is the largest section of "flat" in the US. It's the remains of a prehistoric lake (Lahontan [wikipedia.org]) that has dried up, leaving behind a perfectly flat dried mud surface.
It's where the land-speed records are set. It's where amateur rockets are launched. It's where Burning Man is held.
Re:Oh! Look! (Score:4, Informative)
Wow, what an incredibly dumb comment. Look at the article title: "Hover Bike". Go look up the definition of "hover", as in "hovercraft". They don't need to fly above ground effect, that's the whole point of a hovercraft, is to stay close to the ground but hover enough that you can fly over rough (roadless) terrain and water.