Model 367 BiPod two-seat hybrid roadable aircraft paves way for flying cars

When caught amidst a traffic jam, have you ever wondered of having a car which could take you to the air and right through the chaos quickly. Well that could be possible now. This feat has been made possible by Scaled Composites Model 367 BiPod, which is a twin fuselage aircraft with wings that can be removed when converting the aircraft into a car.

Model 367 BiPod

The BiPod is a two-seat, hybrid-electric roadable plane with built-in portable wings, a stabilizer and few other features to make a rapid transition while on the move from aircraft to car. The vehicle is meant to be driven like a car from the left hand side cockpit and is supposed to be flown from the right side of the vehicle. So much involved was Aviation pioneer Burt Rutan (the creator) and his team in the development of this car-aircraft that the vehicle was ready in a mere four months.

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Model 367 BiPod

Aviation pioneer Burt Rutan’s last creation was unveiled Sunday: a hybrid-electric roadable aircraft dubbed the Model 367 BiPod.

Initially the vehicle will operate with four 15-KW, motor driven propellers. Lithium batteries are employed in the car and are installed in the nose of the car, this also helps in providing extra energy at the time of takeoff of the car. The batteries are supposed to provide power in case of emergency landings up to two times. The vehicle is around 31 ft. 10-inches when in the form of an aircraft and around 7 feet 11-inches wide when in the form of a car.

The car can take off and can land in an area of less than 400 ft. at 200 mph. When flying, the aircraft is capable of flying 560 miles at 200 mph in the high power mode whereas the car can fly at a maximum of 760 miles at 100 mph. When turned into a car, it can run for 820 miles on 18 gal. at freeway speeds. The Batteries are also quite powerful and battery power alone will have a 35 mi. range. The wings of the car will stow between the fuselages within 10 minutes and the aircraft will quickly turn into a car.

One of the main challenges for Rutan was the positioning of the center of gravity as cars and planes have different locations for the same. The puzzle was solved by Rutan himself by placing the center of gravity for the purpose of road stability and for the aircraft, the center of gravity was compensated with direct blowing of the horizontal stabilizer and making rear wheels capable of rotating at the time of take off. Rutan has so far made several short flights on the car at the main runway of California, while Scales Composites is also developing a distributed propulsion system for the vehicle. It is hoped that once ready with all kind of accessories and features, the car will not only attract civilians, but will also be of importance for the military too.

Via: Gizmodo/AviationWeek