I don't think I would want to ride in one of those. Might cut my legs
off getting in and out
--FT
On 4/5/19 4:04 PM, archer75--- via Mercedes wrote:
As carmakers push ahead with self-driving vehicles, an Austrian aerospace
company and its Chinese partner showed off their pilot-less “flying taxi” for
the first time in Europe on Thursday.
The drone’s 16 propellers hummed loudly as it rose above the pitch at Vienna’s
Generali Arena, home to soccer club Austria Wien. The slim plane, which weighs
750 pounds, circled in the air briefly and came down within a few minutes.
The EHang 216, which can seat two passengers, has been tested comprehensively
and is essentially ready for mass production, said Derrick Xiong, co-founder of
Chinese drone maker EHang.
Joining the race for new autonomous aircraft services that do not require
runways, EHang entered a strategic partnership with Austria’s FACC, owned by
Chinese aerospace group AVIC, last year, aiming to offer short-haul services
for passengers, industrial equipment and urgent medical deliveries.
The drone can fly at up to 150 km per hour (90 mph) for almost half an hour,
FACC Chief Executive Officer Robert Machtlinger said. “It can travel between 50
and 70 kilometers depending on the payload.”
The passenger cabin is small, with leg room that taller passengers might find
less-than adequate, an Austrian photographer who took part in a demonstration
flight told Reuters.
FACC says it has already received several thousand orders for the $336,000
drone, with the highest demand in China.
Competitors working toward offering autonomous flying cars early in the next
decade range from aerospace giant Airbus to Uber and AeroMobil.
“Technically... urban mobility, flying without a pilot is possible, it’s not a
dream, it’s existing,” said Machtlinger. “What is hindering us to go into
larger volumes is regulation,” he added. A future legal framework for
autonomous flying vehicles should regulate communication with other planes and
helicopters and provide traffic rules, he said.
Austria supports international efforts to quickly establish the necessary
regulation, said transport minister Norbert Hofer.
“I hope that Austria will be the place where thousands of these drones, of
these air taxis will be built and I hope that very soon we will see a lot of
these air taxis in the air,” Hofer said.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/04/pilot-less-air-taxi-takes-off-in-vienna-demonstration-flight.html
---
This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
https://www.avg.com
_______________________________________
http://www.okiebenz.com
To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/
To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to:
http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
_______________________________________
http://www.okiebenz.com
To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/
To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to:
http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
