Twelve rotors hummed into the sea breeze as SkyDrive¡¯s flying car lifted itself straight up from land and out over Tokyo Bay, marking another moment the new mode of air mobility came a step closer to a reality. Still, hurdles remain to be resolved before it is put into practical use.
The Feb. 24 demonstration flight of the Japanese startup¡¯s SD-05 model at an outdoor space of the Tokyo Big Sight convention center, located in the Japanese capital¡¯s waterfront area, offered a glimpse of the future of mobility with no traffic congestion and less noise compared with automobiles and helicopters, and zero emissions during operation.
In a trip that took about three and a half minutes, the remote-controlled flying car, or electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, climbed up to about 13 meters and traveled roughly 150 meters offshore before returning, at speeds of up to 4 meters per second.
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