The concept for the Kitty Hawk Flyer was demonstrated on April 24. Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, is where the Wright Brothers initially launched four short flights with their own crude prototypes to complete the world’s first successful flight.
If running Google, one of the world’s largest firms by market cap, isn’t enough of a legacy for Alphabet and Google CEO Larry Page, perhaps pioneering the flying car will cement his name into history.
The Kitty Hawk Flyer is set to hit the market by the end of 2017, according to the company. “We believe when everyone has access to personal flight, a new, limitless world will open up to them,” Kitty Hawk Corporation said on its website.
The company claims users will be able to learn to fly the craft in minutes. No pilot’s license will be necessary to fly it, and as for regulation, the Federal Aviation Administration will classify the machine as an ultralight aircraft designated for recreational purposes. Still, for anyone who has sat in Chicago, Los Angeles or Atlanta traffic, where a 30-mile trip becomes eternity, the transportation benefits of the craft are tempting, to say the least.
The aircraft is also designed to fly over water, as the video suggests. Cameron Robertson, the engineer flying the futuristic vehicle, said in published reports, “This is not yet that product in terms of what we will say and what it can do.” While recognizing that the device is still in early stages, “I think it demonstrates a vision of the future,” Robertson added.
The company says the Flyer will be available for purchase, but there are strings attached. Right now, consumers can buy a membership for a one-time charge of $100. Membership gives users a “three-year membership to a passionate community of like-minded people who want to see the world in a new way,” i.e., a higher priority on the waitlist to be one of the first customers to buy it, a discount of $2,000 off of the to-be-determined retail price, and access to a Kitty Hawk flight simulator.
