AssetID: 54998060
Headline: UNCAPTIONED: First Test Footage Revealed of Star Wars-style 'Airbike'
Caption: First test footage revealed of Star Wars-style ‘Airbike’. American company Volonaut has released the first test footage of what it calls the world’s first “flying superbike”, a personal aircraft powered by jet engines that resembles a motorbike in the sky. The Airbike can currently reach speeds of up to 102 kilometres per hour, although current prototypes are only able to remain airborne for around 10 minutes at a time. Instead of using helicopter-style propellers, the Airbike relies on multiple small jet engines. Volonaut says this design gives riders a smoother flight and greater control. The Airbike is founder Tomasz Patan’s latest attempt to make personal aviation more accessible. The latest test video shows the prototype carrying a pilot across open ground and over a small river. It has a maximum payload of 95 kilograms and is designed for one person. Other footage pays tribute to one of its inspirations - the Star Wars films and the scenes in Return of the Jedi when Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia are chased by Stormtroopers on similar ‘speeder’ vehicles. The Airbike is equipped with a fly-by-wire control system, replacing traditional levers and cables with electronic signals linked to a flight computer. It can run on several types of fuel – including kerosene, jet fuel and diesel – and weighs only 30 kilograms, making it light enough to transport by hand. Volonaut says it plans to produce the Airbike in limited numbers, with pre-orders opening this month.
Keywords: Motoring,Test,footage,Star Wars-style,airbike,American,company,Volonaut,flying superbike,sky,motorbike,prototype,airborne,helicopter-style,propeller,design,pilot,river,inspiration,Return of the Jedi,Luke Skywalker,Princess Leia,Stormtroopers,vehicles,fly-by-wire,control,system,fuel,kerosene,diesel,speed
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