Aerofex Hoverbike, Yes It's real.
Flight testing in California's
Mojave Desert led to the presentation of a technical paper regarding
Aerofex's achievements at the Future Vertical Lift Conference in January
2012. The company plans to fly a second version of its vehicle in
October, and also prepare an unmanned drone version for flight testing
by the end of 2013.
Aerofex has currently limited
human flight testing to a height of 15 feet and speeds of about 30 mph,
but more out of caution rather than because of any technological limits.
Older versions of the hover vehicles could fly about as fast as
helicopters, De Roche said.
But Aerofex does not plan to
immediately develop and sell a manned version. Instead, the aerospace
firm sees the aerial vehicle as a test platform for new unmanned drones —
heavy-lift robotic workhorses that could use the same hover technology
to work in agricultural fields, or swiftly deliver supplies to
search-and-rescue teams in rough terrain.
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