Another flying vehicle, this time a motorcycle

Click above to enlarge the SkyBike rendering, click here to watch a video
It seems that a new flying vehicle pops up every few months these days. Most recently, we've taken a look at the Biofueled Skycar and the flying Ferrari from longtime flying car proponent Moller. Now we have the SkyBike, designed by a California company called Samson Motorworks. This one differs a bit from most others due to its use of the trike configuration. Three wheels would potentially make it easier to register this vehicle for the roads in the United States, but it's still a far-fetched idea. No matter, Samson Motorworks hopes to get this vehicle from the concept stage to production status by 2010.
Designer Sam Bousfield seems to recognize the limitations of a flying vehicle himself, saying, "At first I thought I could bolt on wings to a typical motorcycle, and worked out how to do that, but the thought of flying at more than 100mph hanging out in the 'breeze' did not appeal to me. Landing on two wheels would be difficult also." The end result is an enclosed three-wheeler with a canard-style wing configuration. See a video after the break to get a better idea of how this would all work out.
[Source: Motorcycle News]
Video:
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
gorr 1:20PM (12/26/2008)
This thing don't have the engine able to fly this, it's under powered and cannot attend vertical take off and landing. What it take is a vertical turbine like an helicopter feed by hho gas made with a water electrolyser and the water recirculating in the system so it's now possible at few relative cost. I won't buy it if it take complicated landing runaway, i want to land and take off vertically and that made a real flying and rolling machine that can escape traffic jams. It's easier to land with a 30 foots space then a 3000 foots runaway.
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TX CHL Instructor 3:52PM (12/26/2008)
http://www.minstrosity.com/Future.mp3
Biggest problems with "flying cars" are:
1) There is no such thing as a minor accident when airborne.
2) You can't just pull over to the side of the road when something goes wrong.
3) The vast majority of private aviation accidents are caused by pilots over-estimating their skill. Same as for auto collisions.
4) Weather that makes driving tricky can make flying impossible.
As a private pilot, I sure as hell hope that this "flying motorcycle" goes nowhere.
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