A Great Way to Die - Kitty Hawk Flying Bike Takes Flight

A Great Way to Die - Kitty Hawk Flying Bike Takes Flight

Well, it's better than the Mizar at least

Flying cars, along with personal jet packs, cold fusion, and concentrated food pills, have been "just five or ten years away" for about seventy years now. Since about the end of World War II, there have been a number of attempts to make a commercially viable flying car, all of which were more or less dramatic failures. The most successful attempt to build and market a flying car was the short-lived Aerocar, but mostly they've been vaporware like the Moller M400 or unmitigated disasters like the AVE Mizar.

Google co-founder Larry Page thinks he has the flying car issue all figured out though. One of his pet projects is throwing money at a company called Kitty Hawk that just recently unveiled a the prototype of a vehicle that's part helicopter, part motorcycle, and all nuts. On May 26, Kitty Hawk dropped a video of said prototype – called the Flyer, natch – sailing through the air as it and its pilot were put through their paces.

“It’s amazing,” said test pilot Cimeron Morrissey. “It really did kind of feel like my flying dream.”

Kitty Hawk says that the 220-pound, eight-rotor Flyer will be available by the end of the year, although the price hasn’t been announced. Eager customers who put down $100 to be on the waiting list get a $2,000 discount on the purchase price. No pilot’s license is required, though it is meant to be operated in “uncongested areas.”

Kitty Hawk is also offering the first customers a three-year membership in an owners’ community program, which will include special gear and “exclusive access to company experiences and demonstrations.”