Manned multirotors

NEC's flying car prototype in caged testing

Aircraft

NEC demonstrates wobbly multicopter flying car prototype

Japanese electronics giant NEC has been working with a company called Cartivator to design, build and test VTOL air taxi concepts. Now the two companies have demonstrated a multi-seat manned multicopter, a step toward a flying car future Japan believes will arrive around 2030.

Airspeeder plans to kick off manned multicopter racing in 2020, including head-to-head racing

Aircraft

Airspeeder series to debut 120-mph, head-to-head, manned multicopter racing in 2020

A grid full of 10 giant coaxial octocopters, each with a pilot on board, racing each other head-to-head through the air at speeds up to 200 km/h (120 mph)? That's exactly what the Airspeeder racing series is set to introduce in 2020 with the aim of being a kind of Formula One for flying cars.

Alaka'i Technologies' Skai prototype is already in the process of FAA certification

Aircraft

Skai hydrogen-powered eVTOL air taxi boasts enormous 400-mile range

A new electric VTOL air taxi company came out of stealth mode today, using a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain that neatly sidesteps the energy density issue that's holding back battery-powered aircraft. Alaka'i Technologies' Skai machine has a range of up to 4 hr/400 mi and a five-passenger capacity.

Trek Aerospace's Flykart2 is just what it sounds like: a flying go-kart. And it's one of the five finalists to progress to the final stage of Boeing's GoFly competition

Aircraft

Boeing announces its five GoFly personal flight device finalists

Boeing's race to achieve safe, quiet, compact VTOL personal flight devices has narrowed its list down to five competitors, each of which get US$50,000 to help develop their prototypes. Meet the Phase II GoFly winners going on to compete for a US$1.6 million final round prize pool.

The Hexa will land on four large floats, suitable for ground or water landings

Aircraft

The Hexa manned multirotor: It’s real, and you can fly it

Flying taxi services may take some time to arrive, but if you want to be among the first to pilot a manned multicopter, you'll have the chance in 2019. Lift Aircraft is preparing to debut a personal flight experience in an 18-prop electric VTOL aircraft for about the price of a skydive.

$10,000 will reserve you a limited edition Hoverbike

Aircraft

For $150,000 you can now order your own Hoverbike

This crazy looking motorcycle-styled hoverbike appeared in early 2017 and we were skeptical the contraption would ever move beyond just an odd engineering curiosity. However, Hoversurf has revealed its hoverbikes are now ready for production and preorders are open, with delivery scheduled for 2019.

With pontoon-shaped landing skids, the Flyer is clearly designed to be flown over water

Aircraft

Video: Kitty Hawk demos its production-ready solo sport Flyer

Today we get our first look at the production-ready Flyer from Kitty Hawk, a 10-rotor, single seater sport and leisure multicopter that gives pilots around 20 minutes of flying saucer fun at altitudes up to 10 feet. Check out photos and videos of the Flyer in action!

The AT Transporter technology demonstrator is already built and being flown

Aircraft

AT Transporter multirotor "air car" carries cargo or people in detachable pods

Californian company Advanced Tactics is pushing forward with a range of military-focused manned multirotors that run on regular gasoline. It has now announced the AT Transporter, a multi-mission quadcopter capable of carrying up to six people or 1,200 lb of cargo using detachable pods.

Hoversurf's Project Forumla: soaring above the freeways, that's the dream

Aircraft

Project Formula: Russian hoverbike creators take aim at VTOL flying car

The Russian team that brought us the Scorpion Hoverbike is working toward a 5-seater VTOL air taxi. The Formula Project, from Hoversurf, uses fold-away wings and 52 tiny turbine Venturi propulsion units for a combination of VTOL convenience, winged efficiency and a compact form factor.

Dubai Police are making plans for a drone division that will use manned and unmanned airframes for a variety of policing purposes

Aircraft

Dubai police to fly multirotor hoverbikes: What could possibly go wrong?

The magical kingdom of Dubai continues to cement its dual reputations as both the world’s most future-forward city, and the most desperate for attention, with the announcement that it plans to add quadcopter-style hoverbikes to its police fleet.

The hoverbike recently revealed by the Russian arms manufacturer

Aircraft

Kalashnikov takes a shot at building a hoverbike

Here at New Atlas we love a good hoverbike. So when Kalashnikov, the Russian weapons manufacturer best known for its infamous AK-47 assault rifle, released a video demonstrating a strange hoverbike prototype it certainly piqued our interest.

Alex Borg of AmazingDIYProjects in his home-built multirotor chAIR

Aircraft

Swedish flying carpet goes electric

Around this time last year, we featured a crazy Swedish multirotor flying machine invented and flown by engineer Alex Borg. At that time, it featured eight petrol-powered rotors, but earlier this year he opted for lots of electric motors. And now the chAIR manned VTOL has taken off.