A Chinese company has acquired the technology that allowed for the successful test-flight of a flying car, which was first developed in Europe. In 2021, the AirCar used runways for takeoff and landing as it travelled 35 minutes between two airports in Slovakia, powered by a BMW engine and regular fuel.

From a car to an aircraft, it took just over two minutes.

Its design will now only be used in a “specific geographical region” of China for automobiles.

The Cangzhou-based Hebei Jianxin Flying Car Technology Company has acquired the only authority to produce and operate AirCar aircraft within a designated region.

Anton Zajac, creator of KleinVision, the business that made AirCar, stated that following a prior acquisition from another Slovak aircraft manufacturer, the company developed its own airport and flight school.

China is currently aggressively working on developing flying transport alternatives, having paved the ground for the EV revolution.

A drone company named Autoflight tested flying a passenger-carrying drone between Shenzhen and Zhuhai last month. It claimed that despite their being no passengers in the aircraft, the three-hour drive was finished in 20 minutes.

Additionally, Chinese authorities granted the Chinese company eHang a safety certificate for its electric flying taxi in 2023. According to the UK government, flying taxis might be a common sight in the skies by 2028.

However, AirCar needs a runway to take off and land, unlike these drone-like passenger planes.

KleinVision will not disclose the price at which it had sold the technology. AirCar was included in a video that YouTuber Mr. Beast released earlier this year, and it was granted an airworthiness certificate by the Slovak Transport Authority in 2022.

This mode of transportation still faces several obstacles in the form of regulations, infrastructure, and public acceptance of the technology.

“This brave new world of personal transport is acting as a great leveller,” said aviation consultant Steve Wright.

“Everyone scrambling to come up with a whole new set of questions that need to be asked” was the result of global initiatives to regulate the sector.

“In this respect the West’s history can sometimes slow things down, as there is a bit of a temptation to try and squeeze these new machines into the old categories,” said Wright. “China could well see this as an opportunity to get ahead.”

Similar worries formerly applied to electric vehicles, of which China has emerged as the world market leader.

One may wonder if China is ready to follow suit with flying automobiles in light of the sale of the Slovakian AirCar.

Although working prototypes such as the AirCar were “great fun,” Wright predicted that the final product would probably be more ordinary, “with queues and baggage checks and whatnot.”

(Adapted from BBC.com)

Categories: Geopolitics, Strategy, Sustainability, Uncategorized