Air cars ?

[Felger Carbon]

A humorous, dispeptic view of air cars:

http://www.theregister.com/content/6/34646.html

[Ray Toews]

Air accident fatalities in Oregon are way up,,,,one old timer is
quoted as saying he believes the problem is too many people with more
money and desire than brains and respect.

ray
On Wed, 24 Dec 2003 15:41:58 GMT, "Felger Carbon" >
wrote:

>A humorous, dispeptic view of air cars:
>
>http://www.theregister.com/content/6/34646.html
>
>
>

[George Vranek]

I (a retired aeronautical engineer and hobby flyer with 3000+ hours)
believe, that the time is ripe for a serious view of air cars. There are
hundreds of 2-seat cars with 400+ hp in serial production and thousands
being produced by tuning workshops. The only way for such cars, to avoid the
traffic jam on public roads, is to fly! Please have a look at
www.vranek.ch/aerocar.htm
and publish your comments in this NG.

George

<Ray Toews> wrote in message ...
> Air accident fatalities in Oregon are way up,,,,one old timer is
> quoted as saying he believes the problem is too many people with more
> money and desire than brains and respect.
>
> ray
> On Wed, 24 Dec 2003 15:41:58 GMT, "Felger Carbon" >
> wrote:
>
> >A humorous, dispeptic view of air cars:
> >
> >http://www.theregister.com/content/6/34646.html

[Orval Fairbairn]

In article >,
"George Vranek" > wrote:

> I (a retired aeronautical engineer and hobby flyer with 3000+ hours)
> believe, that the time is ripe for a serious view of air cars. There are
> hundreds of 2-seat cars with 400+ hp in serial production and thousands
> being produced by tuning workshops. The only way for such cars, to avoid the
> traffic jam on public roads, is to fly! Please have a look at
> www.vranek.ch/aerocar.htm
> and publish your comments in this NG.


It's already been tried -- disastrously! The website shows a Porsche
911 attached to a set of Cessna Mixmaster wings/tail booms, with a
symbolic engine driving it.

The original had a Ford Pinto and a turboprop engine. The car separated
from the wings about 200 feet in the air on the first flight -- happened
about 20-30 years ago.

The trouble with flying cars is that every attempt has resulted in a
poorly-performing airplane coupled with a lousy car.

To make both perform requires a lot of horsepower and subsequent high
operating costs.

[James]

"Orval Fairbairn" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> "George Vranek" > wrote:
>
> > I (a retired aeronautical engineer and hobby flyer with 3000+ hours)
> > believe, that the time is ripe for a serious view of air cars. There are
> > hundreds of 2-seat cars with 400+ hp in serial production and thousands
> > being produced by tuning workshops. The only way for such cars, to avoid
the
> > traffic jam on public roads, is to fly! Please have a look at
> > www.vranek.ch/aerocar.htm
> > and publish your comments in this NG.
>
>
> It's already been tried -- disastrously! The website shows a Porsche
> 911 attached to a set of Cessna Mixmaster wings/tail booms, with a
> symbolic engine driving it.
>
> The original had a Ford Pinto and a turboprop engine. The car separated
> from the wings about 200 feet in the air on the first flight -- happened
> about 20-30 years ago.
>
> The trouble with flying cars is that every attempt has resulted in a
> poorly-performing airplane coupled with a lousy car.
>
> To make both perform requires a lot of horsepower and subsequent high
> operating costs.

This ought to be interesting.

In the 1950s and'60s, Leland Bryan produced a series of highway-certified
folding-wing Roadables that used their pusher propellers for both air and
road power. Bryan died in the crash of his Roadable III in 1974. And in
1973, Henry Smolinski, mimicking the ConVaii-Car rental unit concept,
fastened the wings, tail, and aft engine of a Cessna Skymaster to a Ford
Pinto. The wing struts collapsed on its first test flight, killing Smolinski
and the pilot.



http://www.fordpinto.com/mitzar1.htm

http://www.fiddlersgreen.net/aircraft/private/aerocar/info/info.htm - An
AEROCAR link, at least this one flew.


James Taylor
www.AICompany.com

[Jerry Springer]

James wrote:

>
>
> This ought to be interesting.
>
> In the 1950s and'60s, Leland Bryan produced a series of highway-certified
> folding-wing Roadables that used their pusher propellers for both air and
> road power. Bryan died in the crash of his Roadable III in 1974. And in
> 1973, Henry Smolinski, mimicking the ConVaii-Car rental unit concept,
> fastened the wings, tail, and aft engine of a Cessna Skymaster to a Ford
> Pinto. The wing struts collapsed on its first test flight, killing Smolinski
> and the pilot.
>
>
>
> http://www.fordpinto.com/mitzar1.htm
>
> http://www.fiddlersgreen.net/aircraft/private/aerocar/info/info.htm - An
> AEROCAR link, at least this one flew.
>
>
> James Taylor
> www.AICompany.com
>
>

That was a sad accident, I was at Oshkosh in '74 when that happened. I got to
look it over the day before the accident. I believe if that accident had not
happened Roadable Aircars would be much more common today.

Jerry

[David O]

"George Vranek" > wrote:

>I (a retired aeronautical engineer and hobby flyer with 3000+ hours)
>believe, that the time is ripe for a serious view of air cars. There are
>hundreds of 2-seat cars with 400+ hp in serial production and thousands
>being produced by tuning workshops. The only way for such cars, to avoid the
>traffic jam on public roads, is to fly! Please have a look at
>www.vranek.ch/aerocar.htm
>and publish your comments in this NG.
>
>George


Pretty CAD picture you have there. IMHO, there is no market for such
a vehicle beyond perhaps a handful of eccentrics. The rest of the
pilot population would continue to drive non-aircar cars, fly
non-aircar airplanes, and simply call a cab or rent a car at a
destination airport when necessary. At least your aircar concept has
wings, unlike several of the "Jetson" aircar concepts out there. The
"Jetson" aircars are suppose to liftoff vertically and take mom to the
grocery store with the push of a button -- equally ill-concieved but
for different reasons.

Least you think I'm totally against aircars, I found this aircar
concept somewhat appealing,

http://www.airplanezone.com/NewsgroupPix/Enterprise.jpg


David O -- http://www.AirplaneZone.com

[George Vranek]

"David O" > wrote in message
...
>
> Pretty CAD picture you have there. IMHO, there is no market for such
> a vehicle beyond perhaps a handful of eccentrics. The rest of the
> pilot population would continue to drive non-aircar cars, fly
> non-aircar airplanes, and simply call a cab or rent a car at a
> destination airport when necessary. At least your aircar concept has
> wings, unlike several of the "Jetson" aircar concepts out there. The
> "Jetson" aircars are suppose to liftoff vertically and take mom to the
> grocery store with the push of a button -- equally ill-concieved but
> for different reasons.
>
> Least you think I'm totally against aircars, I found this aircar
> concept somewhat appealing,
>
> http://www.airplanezone.com/NewsgroupPix/Enterprise.jpg
>
>
> David O -- http://www.AirplaneZone.com
>
I am sorry, but I don't know what IMHO means. The handful of eccentrics is a
very small, but certain market for an aerocar. There is a number of people
able to pay 250'000 $ and more for a car with two seats and 400+ hp. I am
sure, that some day, somebody of them, will install the wing and tail from
an old Cessna Skymaster on his car and will fly it to Oskosh. I hope, that
you will than publish a picture and a competent description of it in your
home page, which contains the best Oskosh report I have ever seen.

George www.vranek.ch/aerocar.htm

[Aardvark]

> I am sorry, but I don't know what IMHO means.
> George
>
>
"IMHO" stands for "In My Humble Opinion"

[David O]

"George Vranek" > wrote:

>I am sorry, but I don't know what IMHO means.

Sorry, it stands for "in my humble opinion".

>The handful of eccentrics is a
>very small, but certain market for an aerocar. There is a number of people
>able to pay 250'000 $ and more for a car with two seats and 400+ hp. I am
>sure, that some day, somebody of them, will install the wing and tail from
>an old Cessna Skymaster on his car and will fly it to Oskosh. I hope, that
>you will than publish a picture and a competent description of it in your
>home page, which contains the best Oskosh report I have ever seen.

Thanks for the compliment. Yes, I would indeed publish a picture,
perhaps more than one, along with the best description I could muster.

Happy new year,

David O -- http://www.AirplaneZone.com