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BlackFly is latest attempt at flying car


Still Waters

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A flying car that will not require a pilot's licence to operate has been unveiled in California.

BlackFly can travel for up to 25 miles (40km) at a speed of 62mph.

Its makers say it will eventually cost the same as a typical sports-utility car, but early models will be more expensive.

It was revealed on Thursday the company is funded by Google co-founder Larry Page.

Mr Page is also behind Kitty Hawk, a separate US start-up currently testing its personal aircraft in Las Vegas.

Several other rival flying cars are in development across the globe.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-44805697

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Good luck. I do not want the general public to have control of anything capable of flight and of substantial size.

Drones being flown irresponsibily is a big enough issue. 

Put the general public in control of aircraft and get ready to process the fatalities.

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On 13/07/2018 at 2:02 PM, Timothy said:

Good luck. I do not want the general public to have control of anything capable of flight and of substantial size.

Drones being flown irresponsibily is a big enough issue. 

Put the general public in control of aircraft and get ready to process the fatalities.

I was thinking exactly the same thing.

I'd love one and would certainly practice mastering it before attempting any real height or distance but I must admit, I wouldn't relish the idea of others who would basically just jump in and go. It's a recipe for disaster. Unless of course, there are stringent rules brought in regarding training/licensing.

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Can you imagine the catastrophe of having several million of these contraptions flying around your area and having the vehicle in the hands of 80 year old people. One major problem would be the power lines and if they go the whole country is at a standstill for a very, very long time.

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5 minutes ago, Berwen said:

Can you imagine the catastrophe of having several million of these contraptions flying around your area and having the vehicle in the hands of 80 year old people. One major problem would be the power lines and if they go the whole country is at a standstill for a very, very long time.

Our new Sky Highway Patrol would keep them in order.  And we can all delight in actually seeing pigs fly.

Welcome to UM Forums!  :st

Edited by Eldorado
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Considering all of the drivers that have "accidents" because they can't pay attention is scary!  Also wouldn't we need landing pads at the office besides parking spaces?  Since it doesn't have wheels you can't drive it into a space.

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If this tech actually works, military and police will have them first. Maybe a decade later a civilian licensing program will happen. Even then, they'll be over-priced

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Doesn't seem hard to make a flying vehicle anymore, they are all pretty much giant drones. But 2 things need to happen first.

1: Make it impossible for these things to collide with anything. Improved sensor and AI to take control from the pilot.

2: Make it so these things just can't drop from the sky on people. Some catastrophic failure backup system to bring them down.

Until then as others have said cars are dangerous enough.

Edited by Talion78
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That looks very very cool! I would disagree with him about needling a license to fly one. Maybe under current law but as soon as more than a few people own it society will demand people know how to fly it, especially after the first casualty.

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Well, I wouldn't put any money into that. Many companies have already tried doing the same, ever since the 1950s, without any success.

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Ehang 184 still seems more promising.

Edited by Chaldon
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I think it's feasible. Uber seems to have come up with a drone based system, the first fleets will be piloted though. They expect to be in operation by 2020 and expect that within 5-10 years will compete with ground based transport on a cost basis. 

https://www.uber.com/info/elevate/

https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp.news.com.au/technology/uber-targets-australian-cities-sydney-and-melbourne-for-its-elevate-flying-car-service/news-story/2ff9af814b5f5e8e5be52d30a13a3f76

 

I do think that the flying car is finally here. 

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5 hours ago, psyche101 said:

I think it's feasible. Uber seems to have come up with a drone based system, the first fleets will be piloted though. They expect to be in operation by 2020 and expect that within 5-10 years will compete with ground based transport on a cost basis. 

https://www.uber.com/info/elevate/

https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp.news.com.au/technology/uber-targets-australian-cities-sydney-and-melbourne-for-its-elevate-flying-car-service/news-story/2ff9af814b5f5e8e5be52d30a13a3f76

 

I do think that the flying car is finally here. 

And now imagine the same number of flying cars in the air as in that traffic jam below. Otherwise it will be nothing but a short-lived luxury contraption like Condorde was.

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7 hours ago, Chaldon said:

And now imagine the same number of flying cars in the air as in that traffic jam below.

It won't be the same principle, especially when relegated to a completely autonomous fleet. It will all be run by computers being guided by GPS satellites. 

7 hours ago, Chaldon said:

Otherwise it will be nothing but a short-lived luxury contraption like Condorde was.

I always thought the concorde was killed of prematurely and lots of concepts seek to replace it. 

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10 hours ago, psyche101 said:

I always thought the concorde was killed of prematurely and lots of concepts seek to replace it. 

As far as I remember there was a talk around 2015 they're going to reboot it. Still it was incredibly costly.

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Another startup by the same group deals with prosthetic arms & such.

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9 hours ago, Chaldon said:

As far as I remember there was a talk around 2015 they're going to reboot it. Still it was incredibly costly.

I think it's more aimed at business flights currently, small jets of 10 or so people. 

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