Here’s Five Cars That Can Take To The Skies This Makar Sankranti

The festival of spring has many names in India–Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Uttarayan and Lohri to name a few. With many names comes many customs, which include bathing in rivers and worshipping the Sun god. Another custom is having the skies filled with colourful kites of all shapes and sizes.

In celebration of this occasion, here are five cool cars that not only can be driven on the road but also take off and join the colourful kites in the skies that we wish came to India, and more importantly, are street legal:

Klein Vision AirCar

One of the more recent additions to join the already rare list of cars that can fly, the Klein Vision AirCar went viral for all the right reasons. One of the main reasons being that it can double up as a proper road-going vehicle and it takes only three minutes to do it. It draws power from a 140PS BMW 1.6-litre engine, and is claimed to offer upto 1,000km of range. So far, the AirCar has flown at 8200ft and reached a maximum cruising speed of 190kmph (103knots). It weighs a lightweight 1,100kg which means the two-seater flying car needs only a 300m stretch to take off.  

AeroMobil 4.0  

Slovakian company AeroMobil is no stranger to making flying car prototypes, and its latest contraption might just be what a commercial flying car of the future might look like. Sure, it looks similar to the Klein Vision AirCar, but the rear of looks more aircraft-like. Another common feature is that it can be converted into a road going machine in three minutes. A 300PS turbocharged internal combustion engine helps it achieve cruising speeds up to 260kmph. It offers a WLTP-claimed range of up to 520km on the road, and can cover a flying distance of up to 740km. 

Terrafugia Transition

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Imagine a Fiat Multipla that blended into a Pontiac Aztek–that’s what the Terrafugia Transition looks like. This part car, part plane is a hybrid with eight electric motors being juiced up by a turbine generator similar to the Jaguar C-X75.  It can run on hybrid-electric mode when driving down the road until it only needs electricity to operate it. Terrafugia claims a range of 644km and a top speed of 160kmph while it’s in the air. Also, unlike the other flying cars in this list, it can fit up to four passengers.

PAL-V Liberty

At a glance, you’d think the PAL-V Liberty is a mini-helicopter, but it can run as a car with the blades merging with the body in a cool manner. Twin petrol engines that make a combined 100PS give it propulsion, with the flying car able to cruise at maximum speeds of up to 180kmph. On the road, it is claimed to offer up to 1315km, and 500km while in the air.

Porsche Boeing 

While this flying machine doesn’t have a name, we’d think Batman would love to consider it as the ‘Batwing’ with its futuristic and black look. Being co-developed by Porsche and Boeing, while technical details are still under wraps, we do know that it’ll be powered by electric motors and be capable of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL). That being said, you’ll have to wait until 2025 before it takes to the skies. 

Which flying contraption were you most impressed with that really encapsulates the meaning of Makar Sankranti? Let us know in the comments section down below.