Pentagon mad-science division Darpa is helping build thought-controlled robotic limbs, artificial pack mules, real-life laser guns and "kill-proof" soldiers. So it comes as no surprise, really, that the agency is now getting into the flying-car business, too.
Darpa hopes its "Personal Air Vehicle Technology" project, announced yesterday, will ultimately lead to a working prototype of a military-suitable flying car -- a two- or four-passenger vehicle that can "drive on roads" one minute and take off like a helicopter the next. The hybrid machine would be perfect for "urban scouting," casualty evacuation and commando-delivery missions, the agency believes.
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The U.S. Air Force C-131 known as the Total-In-Flight Simulator made its final flight to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, Nov. 7. The unusual aircraft flew some 2,500 research flights and contributed to the advancement of many of the flight technologies integral to today's fleet. Prior to its retirement, the TIFS, a 1955 Convair, was the oldest operating aircraft in the Air Force inventory.
An F-15E Strike Eagle from the 391st Expeditionary Fighter Squadron at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, launches heat decoys Dec. 15 during a close-air-support mission over Afghanistan.
N16NK on approach at Fort Lauderdale International, Florida. 2/25/2007
Pentagon mad-science division Darpa is helping build thought-controlled robotic limbs, artificial pack mules, real-life laser guns and "kill-proof" soldiers. So it comes as no surprise, really, that the agency is now getting into the flying-car business, too.
