Stuck in traffic? No worries, with the PALV hybrid motor vehicle/aircraft.
The PALV prototype combines car, motorbike and gyrpcopter in one.
On the ground, the three-wheel vehicle offers the comfort of a car and is claimed to have motorbike-like agility – the latter attributable to a ’tilting’ system.
A single rotor and propeller are folded away until the PALV is ready to fly. Airborne, the PALV flies under the 4000 feet (1500 metre) commercial air space floor, which means it can take off without filing a flight plan.
It runs on petrol like a conventional car and is claimed to reach speeds of up to 200 km/h both on land and in the air. Like a helicopter, it can land practically anywhere. In case of engine failure it is claimed it can be steered and landed safely because it descends vertically rather than nose-diving.
An entrepreneur is working with Spark design engineering to commercially develop the PALV.
