Japanese company Sky Drive Inc. has announced the successful manned test drive of a flying car at the Toyota Test Field in the city of Toyota.
As revealed in a press release and a video of the the test, which was the first public demonstration of a flying car in Japan, the car took off and circled the test field for roughly four minutes. "We are extremely excited to have achieved Japan’s first-ever manned flight of a flying car," said the company's CEO, Tomohiro Fukuzawa. "We aim to take our social experiment to the next level in 2023 and to that end we will be accelerating our technological development and our business development. We want to realize a society where flying cars are an accessible and convenient means of transportation in the skies and people are able to experience a safe, secure, and comfortable new way of life."
The car featured in the test is named SD-03, and it is the world's smallest electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle. Compared to regular cars, the SD-03 takes up the space of roughly two parked cars. SkyDrive has ensured that it is safe, as the vehicle features eight motors designed to ensure "safety in emergency situations."
The core plan with the car is to make it less of a premium item, and more a regular part of daily life. The company is currently planning to launch the SD-03 in 2023, although no price has been announced thus far.
