If you are old enough to remember Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi aka Return of the Jedi – an American epic space opera of 1983, you might also remember prominent speeder bike chase from the sci-fi movie. The speeder-flying bike remained in the fictions so far until Aerofex from Manhattan Beach, California develops a working flying bike that resembles the one from the movie.
To give this flying bike form, Mark De Roche, who is an aerospace engineer, and his team worked closely to develop a mechanical system controlled by two bars at knee level, which enables the vehicle to respond to pilot’s leaning movements to balance the it naturally.
The flying bike was showcased in the Mojave Desert. It can reach a top speed of 30mph and can go as high as 15 feet in the air. Aerofex’s speeder flying bike marks the first successful attempt after a company tried the same back in 1960s. However, the effort failed due to the stability issues that made it simply impossible for a human pilot to ride it safely.
Equally fascinating is the fact that the flying bike uses powerful fans instead of anti gravity device and a special control system allows anyone to drive it without any special training whatsoever. The flying bike has exquisite capabilities as it can easily fly between trees and canyons, close to walls and under bridges and can be vital in heavy lifting in rough terrains where helicopters fail to deliver. However, those of you who expect it to hit the market anytime soon have to wait a little too long as the manufacture wants to sell it to the military first.
Via: Gizmodo / Blastr
