The SkyDrive flying car completed a fully autonomous flight.

 

“The SkyDrive SD-05 flying car completed an unmanned flight in Tokyo.

 

Japanese company Suzuki and startup SkyDrive conducted a demonstration flight of their flying car in Tokyo. The range, admittedly, wasn't the most impressive, but this was more than compensated for by the fact that the innovative vehicle flew autonomously.

 

According to the developers, the SkyDrive SD-05 covered approximately 150 meters at an altitude of 13 meters. The flight took 3 minutes and 30 seconds. The takeoff, flight itself, and landing were computer-controlled—there was no one on board.

 

First shown in 2022, the SkyDrive SD-05 is a three-seat copter measuring 11.5 meters long and 11.3 meters wide. Thanks to its compact size and maneuverability, the flying car can land on helipads and rooftops—in Tokyo, for example, has about 70 such points. The aircraft can be controlled either manually or using an autopilot.

 

The airmobile is equipped with 12 propeller-driven electric motors, generating a total of 180 kW or 241 hp. The aircraft weighs 1,400 kg and has a top speed of 100 km/h.

 

Perhaps one of the SkyDrive's main drawbacks is its very short range. A 50 kWh lithium-ion battery provides a range of about 15 km—an average flight time of 10-15 minutes. By comparison, the Chinese Land Aircraft Carrier can travel up to 1,000 km on a single charge.

 

The SkyDrive SD-05 costs $1.5 million, which at the current exchange rate is 12 million rubles. Serial production began at the Suzuki plant in Shizuoka in 2024, but mass production of the airmobile is yet to be realized. This will only begin in a few years, once Japan has all the necessary legal frameworks and infrastructure for such transport in place."