Air Scooter for $50K

[rps]

There's a link on today's MSNBC page to a recent CNN video report about
an "air scooter" that will purportedly hit the market next year for
$50K. It looks like an ultralight helicopter. No mention of aircraft
or pilot certification requirements. CNN is billing it as the solution
to road gridlock, though most of us would probably dismiss that thought
pretty quickly.

(Sorry, copying and pasting the link doesn't work because the link is a
parameter to a javascript routine that loads and plays a video. Maybe
someone else who is more technically savvy can figure out how to paste
the link here.)

[AJ]

I don't know if this is the article you're talking about (it would help
if you pasted the headline so we could search for it), but here's what
I found:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5750922/

AJ

[rps]

Not only did I fail to paste the headline, I also pointed you to the
wrong web site. (MSNBC probably wouldn't have linked to CNN.)

The headline, on today's CNN.COM, is "Air scooter, Lexus-priced, rises
above gridlock."

[Gig 601XL Builder]

"AJ" > wrote in message
ups.com...
>I don't know if this is the article you're talking about (it would help
> if you pasted the headline so we could search for it), but here's what
> I found:
>
> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5750922/
>
> AJ
>


And other than the never will fly Skycar there is nothing but CGI images of
aircraft. If something was going to hit the market next year one would think
that they'd have to be pretty far along in the process.

[Gig 601XL Builder]

"rps" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Not only did I fail to paste the headline, I also pointed you to the
> wrong web site. (MSNBC probably wouldn't have linked to CNN.)
>
> The headline, on today's CNN.COM, is "Air scooter, Lexus-priced, rises
> above gridlock."
>

That's better. Here's the website of the product.

http://www.airscooter.com/

[Gig 601XL Builder]

"Gig 601XL Builder" <wrDOTgiaconaATcox.net> wrote in message
...
>
> "rps" > wrote in message
> oups.com...
>> Not only did I fail to paste the headline, I also pointed you to the
>> wrong web site. (MSNBC probably wouldn't have linked to CNN.)
>>
>> The headline, on today's CNN.COM, is "Air scooter, Lexus-priced, rises
>> above gridlock."
>>
>
> That's better. Here's the website of the product.
>
> http://www.airscooter.com/
>

Question: Does the AirScooter auto-rotate?

Answer: The AirScooter is designed for the recreational sport flyer and as
such does not auto-rotate. The AirScooter is designed for recreational
flying at low altitude where even traditional helicopters have little
benefit from auto-rotation.

[AJ]

So this is the Vehicle of the Future? Spare me.

AJ

[Dan]

Sounds like engine failure = certain death then? Even a single can at
least glide....

[Grumman-581]

"Gig 601XL Builder" <wrDOTgiaconaATcox.net> wrote in message
...
> Question: Does the AirScooter auto-rotate?
>
> Answer: The AirScooter is designed for the recreational sport flyer and as
> such does not auto-rotate. The AirScooter is designed for recreational
> flying at low altitude where even traditional helicopters have little
> benefit from auto-rotation.

Even a gyrocopter autorotates... Unless there is some way of disengaging the
engine from the rotors, an engine failure would result in you basically
falling out of the sky rather quickly... Of particular note, they did not
mention service ceiling on their website... Hell, they don't even mention
that it can fly outside of ground effect...

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

"Gig 601XL Builder" <wrDOTgiaconaATcox.net> wrote in message
...
>
> "AJ" > wrote in message
> ups.com...
>>I don't know if this is the article you're talking about (it would help
>> if you pasted the headline so we could search for it), but here's what
>> I found:
>>
>> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5750922/
>>
>> AJ
>>
>
>
> And other than the never will fly Skycar there is nothing but CGI images
> of aircraft. If something was going to hit the market next year one would
> think that they'd have to be pretty far along in the process.

Did you watch the Video? Two hundred million dollars? 40 years? Wow. I
wish I could get people to give me two hundred million dollars just to dink
around in the shop on whatever I feel like without ever having to worry
about making it work.


--
Geoff
The Sea Hawk at Wow Way d0t Com
remove spaces and make the obvious substitutions to reply by mail
When immigration is outlawed, only outlaws will immigrate.

[Ben Hallert]

It has a ballistic recovery chute for engine failure, and it's not CGI,
it's flying. I'm not interested in it, but I took the 30 seconds
required to find out these basic facts about it. I urge my fellow
r.a.p posters to try this too. :)

Ben Hallert
hallert.net

[Morgans]

"Ben Hallert" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> It has a ballistic recovery chute for engine failure, and it's not CGI,
> it's flying. I'm not interested in it, but I took the 30 seconds
> required to find out these basic facts about it. I urge my fellow
> r.a.p posters to try this too. :)

IIRC, they said that they were "working" on a ballistic chute for it.

There *is* a difference, there.

I also was interested in how they get it to point where they want it to.
They said there was no pedals, so I guess you have to start flying and bank
where you want to point it?
--
Jim in NC

[Dylan Smith]

On 2006-04-18, Gig 601XL Builder <wrDOTgiaconaATcox.net> wrote:
> Answer: The AirScooter is designed for the recreational sport flyer and as
> such does not auto-rotate.

This sounds like shades of the Mini-500 debacle all over again. Except
the Mini-500 could autorotate.

--
Dylan Smith, Port St Mary, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Oolite-Linux: an Elite tribute: http://oolite-linux.berlios.de
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net

[Gig 601XL Builder]

"Dylan Smith" > wrote in message
...
> On 2006-04-18, Gig 601XL Builder <wrDOTgiaconaATcox.net> wrote:
>> Answer: The AirScooter is designed for the recreational sport flyer and
>> as
>> such does not auto-rotate.
>
> This sounds like shades of the Mini-500 debacle all over again. Except
> the Mini-500 could autorotate.
>
> --


I thought I'd seen the Airscooter before..

http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Rotary/Soviet/HE19G6.htm

[Jimbob]

Not to be a pessimist, but it was on 60 minutes this time last year
and they said next year then. It does fly as morrie scheafer flew it,
sorta. See discussion.

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.aviation.piloting/browse_thread/thread/f66a5ca7723de53b/5a6f7aa58304d611?q=air+scooter+60+minute&

And CBS news take on same story.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/04/15/60minutes/main688454.shtml






On 18 Apr 2006 13:37:12 -0700, "rps" > wrote:

>There's a link on today's MSNBC page to a recent CNN video report about
>an "air scooter" that will purportedly hit the market next year for
>$50K. It looks like an ultralight helicopter. No mention of aircraft
>or pilot certification requirements. CNN is billing it as the solution
>to road gridlock, though most of us would probably dismiss that thought
>pretty quickly.
>
>(Sorry, copying and pasting the link doesn't work because the link is a
>parameter to a javascript routine that loads and plays a video. Maybe
>someone else who is more technically savvy can figure out how to paste
>the link here.)