The People Sunday
Date: 22.06.2014
Page 10
Article size: 620 cm2
ColumnCM: 137.77
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Flying cars: pipe
dream or delayed
reality?
WHEN I was a kid, I loved waidl­
ing the Jetsons, and marvelled at the
wind to have foe best possible route.
This doesn't seem practical in in­
dividually owned car­planes as peo­
ple need to do in different places and
thusiast and will be foe first to admit
that J have probably checked the oil,
tyres and fluids probably once in my
to work with. He often left his house,
life, therefor asking me to do that daily
opened his briefcase and a flying car without actual barriers in foe air. What is unphill task.'Ihe result would be car­
unfolded which he drove/flew to work would stop the antics of tile nmttitus be­ planes falling out ofthe sky because
and folded again into the briefcase.
ing carried over into the air. It would someone was too laity to check the
the whole idea that you can fly be complete chaos with mangled car­ engine oil. And what about licensing
above traffic, without having to en­ planes falling out of the skies, smash­ there would need to be an authority
dure traffic jams, potholes and angry ing innocent pedestrians and cars tasked with testing and licensing driv­
motorists is a tempting proposition, below. Besides, there does not exist a ers/pilots and we would have to trust
made even more desirable by the peo­ system of propulsion capable of be­ that no mageiida happens so that an
ple in Hollywood.
ing economical and practical for car­ unqualified person ends up flying over
But how workable is the concept.
our heads. Thai means police would
planes.
it possible to have a car that functions
also have to have car­planes, just in
on the road and in foe air. Would it be Economics
case you took one too many.
a ffo rdable to the average guy a nd mo re Car­planes would require a system of
importantly, would you need to have a propulsion dial is both small and pow­ Verdict
pilot's licence to fly one? Is it possible erful, and that alone would mean the While the evidence is against any prac­
to own flying cars in the future or is it cost of production would be in die lens tical application of you and me being
of millions of dollars, in addition to i > i n • d ay able to fly to work and visi I _ el­
just a pipe dream.
bad economics would be the reduced alives, this hasn't stopped companies
fuel efficiency as compared to conven­ from flirting with the idea, the most
Engineering
A practical flying car should be able to tional cars and aircrafts, since optimal persistent being Terrafugia, and their
take off while cruising on foe normal fuel efficiency for airplanes is at high Transition (lying car.
I wouldn't strictly call it a flying car,
roads, as well as fly through populated altitudes and high speeds, while flying
urban environments and land safely, cars would be used for shorter distanc­ but more like a road going plane. Its
without the assistance from airport es, at lower speeds, lower attitudes and driveable on the road but you have to
control towers,
at higher frequencies. Economically, drive to an airport to take off and land
Sudi an aircraft would need a sys­ unless there is a new energy source again in an airport, its classified as a
tem of propulsion that is quiet, to discovered, it just wouldn't make any plane so you would need to go through
aviation training. Deliveries are expect­
avoid noise, yet not visible so that it economic sense­
ed to start next year, each costing about
ran fly safely in urban environments. Safety
Ihen there is foe issue of where to fly, Statistically flying is safer than driving Sh 25 million. It will have a flight range
because as a friend acquainted with but unlike commercial flying, flying of 787 km and can run on normal un­
matters of airspace once explained that cars would not have as many safety leaded petrol to a cruising flight speed
s just don't fly anywhere in the checks. Pre­flight checks typically take of 3 72 kph.
air. Every country has marked airespac­ about an hour, and trusting just any Forgive me if I'm in no rush to try that
es where you should fly and the mark­ Toill Dick and Harry to take more than out.
ing out process takes over six years and five minutes every day before flying off
briefcase car that George Jetson went
bears in mind factors like terrain and to work would be daft. I am a car en­
Ipsos Kenya ­ Acorn House,97 James Gichuru Road ­ Lavington ­ Nairobi ­ Kenya
The People Sunday
Date: 22.06.2014
Page 10
Article size: 620 cm2
ColumnCM: 137.77
AVE: 0.0
Ipsos Kenya ­ Acorn House,97 James Gichuru Road ­ Lavington ­ Nairobi ­ Kenya