Kitty Hawk reveals its flying-car is available for test flights

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A company backed by Google co-founder Larry Page is making its all-electric “flying car” available for potential buyers to flight test at its facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Kitty Hawk’s Flyer is a personal aircraft which is being widely called a flying car. It is powered by 10 lithium-ion battery-powered lift-fans, has a top speed limited to 20mph and is designed to be flown without a pilot’s licence over water and uncongested areas.

In a major step forward for the project, the first aircraft, which can fly at an altitude of 10ft (3m) for up to 20 minutes, can now be pre-ordered and test-flights applied for at the website flyer.aero. The first journalist, a reporter from CNN, has also taken a flight in the Flyer CNN.

A prototype of the Flyer has tested in New Zealand, where Kittyhawk is also testing an autonomous, electrically-powered vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft named Cora. Kitty Hawk’s aircraft are being tested and operated by Zephyr Airworks, a company set up in New Zealand in December 2016.

June 8, 2016

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About Author

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Ben has worked as a journalist and editor, covering technology, engineering and industry for the last 20 years. Initially writing about subjects from nuclear submarines to autonomous cars to future design and manufacturing technologies, he was editor of a leading UK-based engineering magazine before becoming editor of Aerospace Testing in 2017.

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