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| The Alef Model A is Alef Aeronautics' answer to pesky commutes by being able to fly over traffic |Credit: Getty |
The future has finally caught up as the world's first flying car has at last been unveiled nearly a year after the concept was announced.
Thanks to California-based Alef Aeronautics, a car that can fly is officially on the ground - and soon to be in the air.
Dubbed the Alef Model A, the technologically advanced concept car was revealed at the North America International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan.
It can both drive as a normal car as well as take off vertically so it can hover and fly over traffic.
“We tried to design and create the first true flying car,” Jim Dukhovny, CEO of Alef Aeronautics, told the Windsor Star.
"We took a blueprint from science fiction. The idea was to stay true to the vision and to stay true to what everybody wants."
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| The California-based company says that the first public demonstration could be as early as 2024 |Credit: Reuters |
The Model A would be the first flying car prototype that wouldn't require take off to be from an airport after receiving a Special Airworthiness Certification from the Federal Aviation Administration, unlike its competitors, the Samson Sky Switchblade.
"We're excited to receive this certification from the FAA," said Dukhovny after receiving the certification in June.
"It allows us to move closer to bringing people an environmentally friendly and faster commute, saving individuals and companies hours each week. This is a one small step for planes, one giant step for cars."
In the air, the cabin is gimballed so the occupants stay upright, and the rest of the body rotates 90 degrees around it.The passenger side becomes the lower wing, and the driver side is the upper wing.
“It’s a gimballed cabin, which means the driver inside is always parallel and never moves," said Dukhovny.
"The car moves around the driver. That gives you more stability than you could fly today in an airplane.”
The Alef Model A is being designed to be used in short bursts - ideally on short commutes to help drivers beat traffic.
Dukhovny's special all-electric car is rumored to have a 200-mile driving range, and is said to have a range of 100 miles in the air.
On the road, the Alef Model A has a top speed of 25 mph, though the top speed in the air has yet to be determined.
The company says that the Model A will have a price tag of around $300,000 and that more than 400 pre-orders for the two-passenger variant have already been placed.
If everything goes according to plan, Americans can start buying the first model year in 2025.
