AeroMobil unveils the ”Sky Dragon” concept - a special edition flying car developed exclusively for China

AT-A-GLANCE

• Luxurious, two-seater AeroMobil “Sky Dragon” concept developed exclusively for China highlights the importance of the fast-growing Chinese personal aviation market and potential for personal flying cars in China to promote increased connections, openness and community
• The “Sky Dragon” concept is based on the AeroMobil 4.0 Short-Take-Off and Landing (STOL) and AeroMobil 5.0 Vertical-Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) flying cars which blend sleek design, European craftsmanship together with performance and exclusivity to offer a thrilling experience on the ground and in the air
• The “Sky Dragon” concept features a comfortable cabin with high-quality finishes and advanced technologies:
  • A high strength carbon fibre monocoque structure for lightweight, increased safety and interior integrity
  • Controls that transform seamlessly from the air to the road in seconds to provide the driver with predictability and confidence
  • Adaptive suspension that adapts for in flight and road driving modes, maximising aerodynamic stability and efficiency during flight and providing optimum handling when driving

The “Sky Dragon” concept was chosen to represent AeroMobil at CIIE as the name accurately symbolises the strength and auspicious power of both flying car concepts. The Dragon provides the inspiration given its importance in Chinese culture and history while also emphasising how both flying cars can soar majestically across the China skies to create a New Era.

The AeroMobil ”Sky Dragon” concept brings together the latest in Automotive and Aerospace technology by a team of designers and engineers with the vast experience from some of the world’s leading companies. The AeroMobil “Sky Dragon” concepts are unique and distinctive featuring the very finest European craftsmanship and innovative technology to provide a unique experience of the world from the air and on the road. 

The concepts are resplendent in a new colour scheme featuring red matte finish with contrasting gold leaf metallic paint. The attention to detail is evident across both concepts with subtle enhancements such as brake struts in gold and the leading edge of the propeller in red, both features enhancing the performance of the vehicle and emphasising its unique capability. Emphasising the importance of the “Sky Dragon” name, the exterior features an ornamental dragon on the roof of the vehicle. 

The interior features perforated Nappa red leather across the major components, including the seats and major surfaces, to complement the exterior finish. The seats also feature an embossed matching dragon head in gold on the headrest. The interior is finished with gold leaf patterned components across the door, controls and centre console to provide a luxurious and harmonious environment.  

The philosophy at AeroMobil is to improve the ‘Radius of Life’ for its customers, providing the ability to do more with life and travel further in less time by using flying cars. For example, a car journey from Shanghai to Hangzhou’s West Lake scenic area could take more than three hours by road, but with the AeroMobil it would take a mere 40 minutes to fly there. Alternatively, a journey from Shanghai to Nantong across the Yangtze River could take up to 8 hours with traffic on the road but would take less than 30 minutes in an AeroMobil ”Sky Dragon”. This shows how flying cars can support important national initiatives such as the integration of the Yangtze River delta. 

The Debut of the AeroMobil Flying Car in China

AeroMobil is pioneering the design and commercialisation of flying cars, developing cutting edge technology to produce a range of vehicles for short take-off and landing (STOL) and vertical take-off and landing (VTOL).  Its range of vehicles feature lightweight technology and full electric power on the ground.  The first production vehicle, the AeroMobil 4.0, showcased on the stand at CIIE in Shanghai, features a deployable fixed wing with future vehicles featuring Vertical-take-off and Landing (VTOL) capabilities, as showcased in the 5.0 concept.

”We are very excited to be showing the AeroMobil flying car in China for the first time and have designed the ‘Sky Dragon’ concepts exclusively for CIIE. We believe China has a vital role to play in the adoption of personal aviation and flying cars,” said Juraj Vaculik, CEO and Co-Founder, AeroMobil.  “China’s foresight to invest in infrastructure to support its goals will ensure it continues to be one of the most influential economies in the 21^stCentury. Flying cars will add to the array of personal transportation options available, offering comfortable, safe travel that dramatically reduces journey times and the environmental impact of intra-urban travel.”

The 4.0 flying car is on display in China for the first time as AeroMobil aims to become a driving force in the development of personal aerial vehicles in the country. 

AeroMobil believes China has the potential to become a pioneer in the adoption of flying cars as it fulfils the ambitious goals of its Belt and Road Initiative which demands more flexible regional and intra-city travel options while reducing environmental impact. With 200 of its 500 new planned airports already built, China is set to become the world’s largest aviation market by 2022. China will have a ready-made infrastructure for innovative flying vehicles such as the AeroMobil “Sky Dragon” because it is designed to comply with existing road and aviation regulations. 

The AeroMobil 5.0 ”Sky Dragon”further demonstrates the potential provided by Vertical-take-off and Landing (VTOL) technology. AeroMobil is actively developing a range of future technologies to enable adoption of personal air transport at scale, including electrification, autonomous capability and innovative propulsion systems.

The 5.0 eVTOL continues AeroMobil’s unique strategy to develop vehicles with fly-drive capability to provide seamless door-to-door journeys with the added convenience of vertical take-off and landing. The AeroMobil 5.0 has been specifically developed for inter-urban and intra-city personal air transport, including as a shared means of transport, to provide a premium limousine service in the sky.

The AeroMobil 5.0 ”Sky Dragon”features two electrically driven rotors to ensure safe vertical take-off with horizontal thrust being provided by an electric powered rear mounted propeller. Inside it seats four passengers in comfort with a next generation user experience that provides each occupant with access to a personalised inflight entertainment system. 

The 5.0 VTOL design maintains AeroMobil’s high standards for comfort and safety from the 4.0 STOL, which in flight mode, will be among the first flying vehicles with airbags, a frontal automotive vehicle crash structure and a parachute. Based on similar design language, it will have an instantly recognisable silhouette, with a modern and desirable exterior with a comparable footprint to a regular car.

Production of the AeroMobil 5.0 VTOL model will follow the AeroMobil 4.0 STOL roll-out which will be available in a limited series to private owners around the world in 2020. The company expects the AeroMobil 5.0 VTOL concept to be available within the next seven to ten years, in line with the reality of building and scaling the infrastructure and regulation for such innovative personal transportation.  

“We see a lot of interest around the VTOL technology which can change commuting patterns in the developed urban areas, especially in China. VTOL is a core part of our ongoing technical development and we anticipate to start testing prototypes in the early part of the next year. This will enable AeroMobil to start to test some of the key systems for distributed electrical propulsion and collect invaluable data that will accelerate the design of our unique personal aerial vehicle platform.” – said Patrick Hessel, Chairman of AeroMobil.

Growth of personal air transport in China

AeroMobil sees strong growth potential for personal aviation and flying cars in China. As the next frontier and global mega-industry, personal air transportation can support China’s important strategic initiatives and ambitions to increase connections between its large urbanised areas, reduce traffic and congestion and improve the ‘radius of life’ of its citizens. Flying cars can easily integrate with current and future transportation infrastructure, allowing for greater connections between other modes of transport across short and medium distances. 

AeroMobil is participating at CIIE to demonstrate our innovative technology while recognising the importance of establishing partnerships with Chinese authorities, cities and companies to pioneer the future of personal air transportation in China.  

“The future of urban transportation requires close partnership between regulators, cities, authorities and the private sector. AeroMobil is closely working with cities around the world to establish opportunities to test, develop and implement routes for safe personal transportation in the sky. AeroMobil seeks close collaboration with China’s forward-thinking cities to develop these opportunities and create the social and economic growth that innovation and technology in personal air transportation can generate.” – said Jonathan Carrier, VP Corporate Development of AeroMobil.