World’s 1st flying car with flight range of 99 | Tech News

The world’s first flying car recently took off in California, with video from the U.S. startup that created it showing it flying over parked cars in a field and on roadways.

The vehicle, which was created by Alef Aeronautics and dubbed the Model Zero, has the capability of traveling nearly 200 miles by land or about 100 miles in the air. And, it’s entirely electric.

Alef Aeronautic’s demonstration became the first real-world test of a flying car design, which the startup’s chief executive Jim Dukhovny stated “represents an important proof of technology in a real-world city environment.”

“We hope it will be a moment similar to the Wright Brothers’ Kitty Hawk video, priving to humanity that new transportation is possible,” he said, according to the Independent.

Most existing models of flying cars, the vast majority of which haven’t been tested, rely on a similar design to the Model Zero, using external rotor blades similar to quadcopter drones. Some others have fold-down wings, but those ones require a significant amount of space to take off.

If you can’t see the video, click here.

What sets the Model Zero apart is its more conventional automotive design, which hides the rotor blades within the chassis of the car, making them internal rather than external — though the concept is the same.

Alef Aeronautics was founded in 2015, the same year the smash-hit 1989 science fiction film Back to the Future Part II predicted that flying cars would take over the world.

As it stands, the company’s Model A vehicles are going for $300,000. The company is hoping that its vehicle will be able to be “affordable for most people, not just the rich” one day, but the cost of producing the vehicles is significant and not a quick and easy process, Dukhovny told CNN.

A new Model Z, however, could cost as little as $35,000, though what it entails isn’t yet clear. For the Model A, Dukhovny said the company had already received more than 3,300 pre-orders. The vehicle is expected to enter production later in 2025.

A manufacturing agreement to fulfil the orders was already reached with PUCARA Aero and MYC, which is a joint venture that has produced aviation-grade parts for Airbus and Boeing.

The company’s website states, “Designed to drive on the street, take off vertically when needed and fly overhead above traffic, we’re building the solution to the issues of modern congestion.”

It continues, “We enable faster and easier commutes, driven by proprietary technology that elevates the vehicle without the need for runways. Alef will deliver a safe, affordable vehicle to transform your everyday commute.”

“It fits into a regular driving lane and conforms to all traffic regulatory conditions,” the site says. “Alef flying car fits into a regular parking space and inside a regular-sized garage.”