Our first thought on seeing this hoverbike was: does this count as motoring or just general technology? Well, actually it was: where can we get one and how long will it take to get here? The bad news is that the Aero-X, a two-seater hoverbike from startup Aerofex, will only be available some time in 2017 and it’ll run you about $85,000 (R880,000) to order one now. The good news is that someone’s actually making a hoverbike. Or flying land-jet-ski, if you prefer. The video footage of the Aero-X makes the handling look similar to some marine transportation we’ve seen.
The Aero-X looks to be the recreational beach vehicle we’ve always wanted and the creators say that it will be capable of reaching a height of ten feet (3 metres) and will attain speeds of 45 miles per hour (70km/h). That’s plenty for us.
The testing video you see above is from 2012 and shows an incomplete hoverbike being put through various paces. The final product will be capable of taking to the road in a conventional manner (if you’d like to waste it that way) but it can also be fitted with pontoons for aquatic movement. It’s 2014, shouldn’t we have a whole lot of these on the road by now? Never mind, 2017 is just around the corner.
