They say that the Parajet Skycar will be the world's first carbon
neutral flying car. But what piques my interest is that a Skycar
Expedition team plans to fly/drive/whatever the vehicle from London to
Timbouctou in 2009. Using a combination of flight and driving to combat
the Saharan terrain will cover the 3000 miles journey. A cross between
a dune buggy and a paraglide, the Parajet Skycar is a unique vehicle. A
biodiesel-modified Yamaha R1 1000cc motorcycle engine powers it. The
motor runs through a Continuously Variable Transmission either to power
the rear wheels or to turn a large rear-facing propeller via a belt
drive. In the Fly Mode, it takes off from a field or airstrip in less
than 200 meters. In this mode the latest ram-air wing suspends it.
Since the vehicle has no pitch control it will not stall or dive. It
has a take-off speed of 60 kmph, a top speed of 110 kmph and a range of
300 km. Cruising altitude will be 2000 to 3000 ft with a maximum
altitude of 15,000 ft. In the event of engine failure, the pilot simply
glides to the nearest field or strip of land. The car carries a
passenger and a pilot.