Who's Riding this Bike first?

lukep

He Hath Arisen
Sep 18, 2010
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This, my comrades, is a real bike that you can buy soon:

The Hoverbike:

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  • Airspeed Vne - 150 KIAS (untested)
  • Hover (out of ground effect) - >10,000ft (estimated)
  • Dry weight - 110kg
  • Max gross weight - 270kg
  • Total thrust - 295kg
  • Engine - 80kw @ 7500rpm
They said it is in testing now: (teathered, but complete)

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And it has a ceiling higher than you can breath in.

It runs on regular unleaded, goes about 90 miles on a tank, has a 45 Minute max flight time, reaches speeds of about 173 MPH, and is classified as an ultralight so you don't need a licence to fly one.

Bonus: Can fit it in a prius' parking space:

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This Ozzie is making & testing them:

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But sadly (perhaps reasonably) he hasn't flown one unteathered before... He likens it to learning how to fly a helicopter without an instructor.

He goes on to say "the hoverbike is quite stable and does not want to tip over" and that for the production version they will sell your choice between two models: one where YOU wear the parachute, and one where two explosion-driven parachutes are in boxes welded to the frame. (It'll look uglier, but be far safer, I'd bet.)

I believe his biggest problem will be with the fact that the propellers are sucking in anything they can from the top. Even if he does put a fine mesh screen over the top of both fans, (he says they plan to) the problem then becomes trying to jump off one at altitude will likely suck you to it!

And yeah, you can forget using these in the city, but they are pushing these for use as/for:
  • Aerial Cattle mustering
  • Search and Rescue
  • Aerial Survey
  • Wildlife and Parks
  • Film
  • Power-line Inspection
  • Military and Emergency Services

...Of course we all know that once perfected, these things are primarily going to sell to adrenaline junkies and WF ballers. :cool-smiley-008:

No price set yet, but who cares. Who's up for a ride?
 


Nice, comes with a helmet and parachute in case it gets untethered while you're sitting on it. I can see this replacing the trampoline.
 
In mother Russia we prefer this one:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95U4ve7XHSk"]YouTube - ‪Fire Extinguisher Flight On A Train! EPIC!‬‏[/ame]
 
Can't use in the city? I can only imagine how badass high speed chases are going to be in the coming years with cops riding these trying to regulate that.

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Can't use in the city? I can only imagine how badass high speed chases are going to be in the coming years with cops riding these trying to regulate that.

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They already can't catch crotch rockets, without radio...
 
Watched the video. Seems like you would want some additional means to keep it from tilting to any extreme angle. This looks like it is much closer to production and useful than any of the flying cars. I wonder what the range will be.