Flying Cars

The Daily Mail reported today that flying cars could be with us in five years.  Prototypes exist in the USA and reportedly the CAA states that certification in Europe should be easy on the back of that.

Should we be worrying about the skies being filled with these things? I would say an emphatic NO to that, and here's why.

I would expect certification in the USA to be in the Experimental category - this allows people to build flying machines and use them privately but with fairly strict limitatons.  At present we have no equivalent category in Europe and the present European legislation is stricter than that of the US.  It is to change as Europe takes more control over aviation from the individual countries but I can't see a European Experimental category.

To fly you need a pilot's licence - these are expensive to obtain and maintain.  It is quite possible that the majority of the people who want one already have one and are quite happy flying aircraft - there's a novel idea.  Some may take to the flying car but I can't see it being too many.

Aircraft have to be maintained to a high standard of airworthiness - this is not cheap at all as any owner will tell you.  This is why many pilots hire an aircraft to let others have the risk and expense of maintenance and repairs, not to mention insurance.

As these flying cars are fixed wing, not rotary, they will need a runway to operate from.  This means you will have people having to get in their flying car, drive to an airfield, convert from car to aircraft, takeoff and fly to an airfield near their destination, convert back to a car and then drive to their eventual destination.  Practical, no more than driving to the airfield, hiring a real aircraft, and getting a taxi or hire car at the other end - which will also be less time consuming as there will be no rigging / derigging.

We also have the weather to contend with - weather you can safely drive in will prevent flight - so chances are you will have to drive anyway in a car that is a compromise and offers the worst of both worlds.

The final reason I have come up with for now is damage.  Get a car park ding in a conventional car and you are annoyed.  Get one in this machine and it can no longer be used as an aircraft until a certified engineer has repaired it and it has been deemed fit to fly again.

No way will I be getting a flying car rating on my licence!