You Can Now Buy a Flying Motorcycle

Since the Jetsons first took the cartoon world by storm, people have been imagining zooming to work on their very own flying car. Though we’ve seen a few false steps towards realizing such an invention over the last couple decades, the future may be finally upon us. Except, it’s not a flying car that’s getting so much attention — it’s a flying motorcycle.

The Personal Air and Land Vehicle — or PAL-V — is a modern iteration of James Bond’s flying machine in You Only Live Twice. Thanks to its hydraulic suspension system, it can overcome its high center of gravity, allowing it to lean into turns on the road and making it stable to drive quickly. The 230 horsepower vehicle can even reach a top speed of 112 miler per hour both on land and in the air.

It only takes the PAL-V 10 minutes to go from motorcycle to gyrocopter, and besides its main rotor, it has a small rear-mounted propeller

It flies below 4,000 feet, which is good, because it means that operators won’t need an aircraft license to use the PAL-V.

This transforming gyrocopter was designed and built in the Netherlands and is now on sale there, with deliveries beginning in 2016. Other countries will have the opportunity to order the PAL-V in the fall, but the manufacturer of the same name is looking to only make 150 units per year for production capacity.

“Technology like this gets us excited and we look forward to a time when a product like this might further innovate the motorcycle industry.” says Mike Eichhorn – Chesapeake Cycles, Annapolis, MD.

As cool as this flying machine seems, it does cost a whopping $395,000, which is how much a Lamborghini Aventador costs. But then again, does a Lamborghini fly?