Will Flying Cars Ever Be a Feasible Means of Personal Transportation?

The concept of flying cars is certainly not new, and the historical record is replete with accounts of flying vehicles of various types in mythological and religious texts that date to antiquity. More recently, the flying cars featured in science fiction books, the television series, The Jetsons and the movie, Blade Runner, among numerous others, have popularized the idea with many American consumers, and the aviation industry is responding with hundreds of prototypes on the drawing board and dozens of flying car models already in production (Keil 2022). Despite these trends, though, it remains unclear whether flying cars for personal transportation will ever overcome the multiple challenges that confront the industry at present. The purpose of this paper is to review the literature to assess whether flying cars will ever be a feasible means of personal transportation. The arguments in support and against this proposition are followed by a summary of the research and the answer to this question in the conclusion.

Why Passenger Flying Cars Will Soon Be a Reality

Passenger flying cars are part of a rapidly emerging concept that has been termed urban air mobility, which involves the transportation of passengers and goods using various innovative aviation technologies, including most especially electric, rotor-powered vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) vehicles. In this regard, Jiang et al. (2023) report that the concept of urban air mobility encompasses a diverse range of VTOL vehicles that function more like passenger-carrying drones for on-demand transportation. Among them, the car-like VTOL is advantageous due to its compact configuration, safe rotors, high user affinity, and technological fashion (115).

In other words, flying cars are already a reality, and current trends indicate that the supply, if not the demand, for these vehicles will continue to increase well into the foreseeable future. Many companies in the aviation industry currently regard flying cars as the next big thing and are making significant investments in their own versions. In fact, according to one market analyst, By some counts, a staggering 700 designs for electric/hybrid-electric flying vehicles are in development, and many are already in the air (Coffey-Rosich 2022, 28). Moreover, the global market for flying cars was already estimated at more than $8.5 billion in 2021, and this figure is expected to increase to $30.8 billion by 2030 (Coffey-Rosich).

Some of the major actors that are actively involved in the research and development of flying cars include NASA, the U.S. Army, Airbus and Boeing, as well as smaller startups such as Opener and Lilium, all of which have completed test flights of flying cars in recent months (Ehline 2022). Likewise, Uber has also taken significant interest in flying cars and has announced plans to launch a fleet of air taxis that will cruise at up to 2,000 feet (Ehline).

All of the flying cars that are currently under development or commercial production have incorporated the latest photonics technologies including LiDAR sensors as well as visible-light and infrared cameras to improve the safety of their operation, meaning that humans are overcoming the long-standing tradeoff between the promise of the Jetson mobile and the reality of flawed human drivers (Coffey-Rosich 7). Unfortunately, despite this massive influx of interest and investments, flawed human drivers are among the least of the flying car industrys problems and it is unlikely that these vehicles will ever be a feasible means of personal transportation for the reasons discussed below.

Why Passenger Flying Cars Will Never Be Feasible

Prior...

…is well known that flying is the safest mode of commercial transportation currently available, but accidents can and do happen all the time even with the most rigorous safety programs in place. If flying cars are added to this mix, the potential for disaster is compounded geometrically, and large numbers of people would die and cause untold additional damage in the process when they hit the ground with their rock-like flying car.

Finally, proponents of flying cars argue that many of the concerns about the safety of the operation of these vehicles can be addressed through the extensive training of aspiring drivers. This onerous requirement, combined with the high price tags of flying cars, will make them an undesirable alternative to the internal combustion beasts that keep the nation moving at present. Even if economies of scale bring the price of flying cars down to a competitive level, say on par with an SUV, the other above-listed constraints will most likely keep flying cars limited to hobbyists and daredevils.

Conclusion

Besides colonies on the moon and Mars, American consumers have been promised flying cars in the near future time and again and now they are here. Admittedly, flying cars sound great! Who would not prefer zipping through the air at 200 miles per hour, free of traffic jams with an unsurpassed view, to get to work or the mall in a fraction of the time? This scenario is not accurate, though, and tens of thousands of flying cars jockeying for parking spaces is a recipe for disaster, assuming that drivers actually reach their destinations. Limited battery power and range, high costs, fallible mechanical and electronics systems and flawed human drivers will keep flying cars restricted to a few enthusiasts who will join the legions of…