Chinese Firm Buys European Flying Car Technology

'It took just over two minutes to transform from a car into an aircraft.'

Chinese Firm Buys European Flying Car Technology

A Chinese company has acquired the technology behind a flying vehicle, which was initially created and successfully tested in Europe. 

In 2021, the AirCar flew for 35 minutes between two Slovakian airports, powered by a BMW engine and regular fuel. It took off and landed on runways. 

It takes a little over two minutes to go from a vehicle to an airplane. 

Now, cars based on this design will be utilized in a "specific geographical region" of China. 

Hebei Jianxin Flying Car Technology Company, located in Cangzhou, has acquired the sole license to build and operate AirCar aircraft in an unknown location.

Anton Zajac, the founder of KleinVision, the business that invented AirCar, stated that the company established its own airfield and flying school following a prior acquisition from another Slovak aircraft manufacturer. 

China, which pioneered the EV revolution, is now aggressively exploring flying transportation options. 

Last month, Autoflight conducted a test flight of a passenger drone between the cities of Shenzhen and Zhuhai. The voyage, which takes three hours by automobile, took only 20 minutes, according to the report, despite the fact that the aircraft was empty.

In 2023, Chinese regulators issued eHang a safety certificate for its electric flying taxi. The UK government has stated that flying taxis might become a common part of the sky by 2028. 

However, unlike these drone-like passenger aircraft, AirCar does not take off and land vertically and requires a runway. 

KleinVision refuses to disclose the price at which the technology was sold. The Slovak Transport Authority gave AirCar a certificate of airworthiness in 2022.

This article was originally published on the BBC.