dude, where's my flying car?

dude, where's my flying car?

Ah, finally I have found it, my own personal flying car: the Gen H-4 one-man ultralight helicopter. This sucker costs about 30 grand and requires 40 to 60 hours to assemble. The kits are available from Ace Craft USA. Two counter-rotating rotors on top mean that there is no need for a tail rotor. It is run by four 10hp (7.46kW) engines, each of which weighs only 6.5 pounds (3kg).The Gen H-4 is able to fly even if you lose one of the four engines, and can safely land even with two engines out of commission. (hat tip to Silver @ Claire Wolfe's blog.)

Now, some people might not like the counter-rotating rotors and would prefer to have the tail rotor on their ultralight helicopter. For those people, there is this beauty:The great thing about these two helicopters is that they are ultralights; that means that their top speed is about 55 mph (89km/h) and that they only hold a maximum 5 US gallons (just under 20 liters) of fuel. What's so great about that? Well, it means that one does not need a pilot's license to fly one of these babies... just get in and go.

Of course, it helps to get a little bit of instruction first, but as there is only one seat, your first flight is also your first solo flight. But man oh man these look like a lot of fun.

Technorati Tags: Ultralight, Helicopter