All of a sudden, it feels like future is really here. At least when it comes to transportation. Driverless cars now exist and it's likely we'll be seeing them on our streets soon.
If that wasn't enough, it looks like flying cars might soon be a reality too. Geely, Volvo's parent company, announced this week that it has acquired flying car startup Terrafugia. The Chinese company now has possession of Terrafefugia's operations and assets in their entirety, reports the Mail Online.
Last year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA for short) approved Terrafugia's 'street-legal airplane', Transition. That move has opened the door for the development of hybrid vehicles that weigh no more than 1,800 pounds.
Credit: Terrafugia
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The aircraft has fold-out wings that weigh roughly 1,300 pounds, and have fixed landing gear.They seat a maximum of two people, including the pilot, and to operate them, the driver must have a sport pilot certificate. It requires just 20 hours of training to get one.
Following the acquisition by Geely, Terrafugia aims to deliver its first flying car to the market as soon as 2019 and hopes to make the world's first vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) flying car being made available by 2023.
Geely's founder and chairman, Mr Li Shufu, said: "The team at Terrafugia have been at the forefront of believing in and realising the vision for a flying car and creating the ultimate mobility solution.
Credit: Terrafugia
"This is a tremendously exciting sector and we believe that Terrafugia is ideally positioned to change mobility as we currently understand it and herald the development of a new industry in doing so.
"Our investment in the company reflects our shared belief in their vision and we are committed to extending our full support to Terrafugia, leveraging the synergies provided by our international operations and track record of innovation, to make the flying car a reality."
Which is all well and good and very exciting, but we're wondering just where these things are actually going to fly. If it's just a metre or so off the ground, that seems pretty pointless.
And if it's any more than that it's going to be an absolute nightmare working out all the logistics. Will they have their own elevated roads? Or are there just going to be traffic jams in the sky too, like some post-apocalyptic scene from Bladerunner?
So while the cars admittedly look pretty cool, maybe the future isn't that close after all.
Featured Image Credit: TerrafugiaTopics: World News, tech