Source of article: The Terrafugia Transition - a flying car that fits inside your garage by Personal Money Store
The flying car with your garage in mind
The Terrafugia Transition fits in a garage and blends into traffic—as a car. ”A Volkswagen within the belly of a carp” is the aesthetic assessment of the Terrafugia Transition by CNET’s Johnathon E. Skillings. The vehicle, he said, burns regular unleaded fuel from any gas station either driving or flying. It gets 30 miles to the gallon on the highway and has a top speed of 65 mph. It has a 450 mile range in flight cruising at 115 mph. The car can transform from airplane to car in just 30 seconds, as outlined by Terrafugia.
Light sport aircraft rules
The Terrafugia Transition has been designated as a light sport aircraft, the smallest private plane classified by the FAA. The maximum weight allowed is 1,320 pounds. But Terrafugia couldn’t work within the air bags, crumple zones and roll cage mandatory for cars at that weight. Terrafugia wanted the FCC to classify the plane as a light sport aircraft, Jalopnik reports, because owners will only need 20 hours flying the Transition to be licensed by the FAA. Terrafugia can now sell the Transition with the caveat that it inform buyers of the extra 110 pounds in weight, thanks to the FAA exemption.
Transition is airborne, will Terrafugia follow?
Terrafugia says one of the major advantages of the Transition over ordinary light aircraft is safety. If the weather is too severe for safe fight, The Telegraph reports, pilots can simply fold their wings and drive home. But the Terrafugia Transition won’t be seen in traffic jams just yet. The vehicle flying now is just a prototype. Sometime in 2011 is Terrafugia’s target for a customer-ready production model. Even so, 70 individuals have enthusiastically thrown down a deposit on the $ 194,000 Transition. A $ 10,000 refundable deposit from each potential customer is being held in escrow for now, within the event that Terrafugia goes into a tailspin before the Transition can soar.
Discover more info here:
cnet.com
jalopnik.com
telegraph.co.uk
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